Cometh the Hour, Cometh the God, Cometh Ragnarok
by Doctorsprettybaby
Summary: Hemsworth wants RAGNAROK let's give it to him. This is a reboot of THOR #154 to #157. Stan 'The Man' Lee and Jack 'King" Kirby finest hour! This is not the mythological Ragnarok as Balder is still alive and Loki has yet to eat the witch's heart. IT IS FINISHED!.
1. Chapter 1

PROLOGUE:

"At the beginning of my reign as King of Asgard we faced the threat of universal conquest by an overly ambitious, arrogantly proud and warlike race. They fully intended to plunder the wealth of, and enslave, every one of the nine realms before spreading out to all the other worlds in the cosmos. I, and the warriors of Asgard, defeated them in a long and bloody battle. Afterwards I imprisoned them and sealed them away until their time of punishment should be over."

COMETH THE HOUR,

COMETH THE GOD,

COMETH RAGNAROK

The guards snapped to attention when they heard the tap of the spiked end of Gungnir as the Allfather walked past them in the prison corridor inspecting each cell as he went. Odin stopped to enter a cell at the end of the hallway, which held only one occupant who was sitting dejectedly in the center of it. The prisoner, dressed in tattered and ragged clothing didn't look up.

"How are we feeling today?" The Allfather coldly smiled, as a bright gold and green light traveled over his body revealing that it was Loki hiding behind an illusion. The younger man's shoulder length black hair was draped over and curled about the wolf haired collar of his gray winter over coat as he stood over the form of what was once the mighty King of Asgard and Loki's adopted father, Odin.

Odin's only reply to his tormentor was to slowly look up at his mad son with an eye nearly devoid of any emotion. The old man knew why his son was here, to siphon more of his life force from him and to torment him with news of Thor and his human consort.

"Why do you not kill me?" Odin groaned lowering his head into his manacled hands. "What more could you take from me?"

"I will take everything that is mine by the lawful right of blood succession as the son of the Queens of TWO realms!"

Odin's head snapped up to gaze in surprise at Loki who sneered back at him.

"Yes, I now know who my birth mother was; Freya, Queen of Alfheim" Loki answered the unspoken question. "It took me quite some time, but, I did eventually find it in the Chronicles of the Kings. Tell me, did your first wife, the lady Bertha, ever forgive you for pandering her twin children, Freyr and Freya, off like cheap trinkets?"

"What I did, I did to bring peace to the realm and to end needless blood shed…"

"What you did was send my mother off, like one of your prized brood bitches, to be covered by a MONSTER!" Loki slammed Gungnir's point into the cell floor with a snarl of rage, he screamed back indignantly as he made his skin turn blue and his eyes red while he knelt down in front of his captive, and seizing Odin by the throat he forced him to look into his Jotun face and then roared. "Are you satisfied with the outcome of your political machinations old man? Have I lived up to your expectations?" With a low growl Loki moved his glaring, angry face closer to his stepfather's as he continued, "Especially since I am the monster YOU created?"

A greenish light glowed from Loki's right hand as he held onto his adopted father's neck. A light that traveled up the younger man's arm till it covered his whole body and Odin seemed to shrivel even more until Loki released him, throwing him to the floor.

"I haven't killed you outright because you're responsible for the deaths of both my mothers and you fully deserve to rot in this dungeon before you rot in hell."

Slowly Loki's skin changed back to pink and his eyes to hazel as he straightened to his full heighth, Gungnir held firmly in his right hand. "You needn't worry about Asgard, or your precious Thor for that matter, as he is more useful to me as a live guardian and protector of all the realms. After all, he did save my life on Svartalfheim. So with your idiotic son at MY side, I will usher in a new Golden Age that will last for generations of MY descendants as they sit the throne of Asgard FOREVER."

Loki turned to leave, and then stopped to glance back at Odin with a sarcastic smile. "All things considered, if you hadn't brought me back as a hostage so long ago, to raise me as your son, that moron you fathered would've destroyed everything you created in a war with Jotunheim, or, any one of the other nine realms" a bright greenish gold light enveloped Loki's body and once again he was transformed into the Allfather. "By saving my life you saved Asgard, and, preserved the throne for me and for that I thank you."

Loki/Odin walked down a hallway through the palace living quarters as guards first bowed their heads then snapped to attention as the Allfather passed them until he came to the late Queen Frigga's rooms.

"I do not wish to be disturbed" Loki/Odin commanded as he unlocked the doors and strode into the room as the guards closed the doors behind him. As he locked the doors, Loki cast a spell of concealment over himself as he shifted back to his own form. Looking about Frigga's antechamber sadness flowed up from his heart as tears began to well up in his eyes. He had ordered his mother's rooms sealed and forbade anyone but himself to enter it. Loki walked around the circular pond that still bubbled calmly and quietly as he entered her bedroom. All of her personal items: perfume, combs, make-up, and jewelry remained where Frigga had left them on the day she had been murdered by the Kursed.

Tears slowly trickled down his cheeks as he approached Frigga's bed as memories of the times when, as a young child, he would run to this room during severe night storms and she would comfort him, or how she would bring him to her bed to care for him while he was ill. Never would he forget the time when he, and the young Lady Amora, had been taken hostage by the Norn Queen Karnilla or how savagely she and Frigga fought over him, for him. By sword and dagger he learned just how much his adopted mother loved him that not only was she willing to die for him, but to kill for him as well. With each tear that escaped from his eyes another memory of the only mother he'd ever known would rise up till he could no longer stand under sorrow's crushing weight. His right hand slid down Gungnir as his legs collapsed under him while he wept uncontrollably.

Gasping from the draining emotional release, Loki raised his head and hands as if in supplication as he conjured an image of his adopted mother to appear before him looking as she did from the last time he saw her alive. His eyes were red from crying and tears had made tracks down his face as he struggled to force words from his throat.

"I…I avenged you. I destroyed the monster that killed you, and…the monster that allowed you to die, rots in the dungeons…" he lost the ability to speak as his grief overcame him. "I'm sorry, so sorry…I could have saved you…" he pleaded with the image, "I would have saved you if I had been there…because you were right…you are my mother."

Loki reached up to embrace the image of Frigga, but when his hands touched it, it faded from his sight, leaving him alone with his grief. When he managed to bring himself under control, Loki grasped Gungnir and shakily got to his feet. Looking about Frigga's bedroom he wiped the tears from his face with his left hand and then slowly walked back out to the antechamber, to the pond where he stopped to wash his face. The sun was beginning to rise and he must go to the throne room, after all he was the KING of Asgard and there were judgments to make and a kingdom to rule. Which he would rule in HER honor as it was his mother that put him on the throne. It was Frigga who gave him Gungnir, who told him that it was his, by right of blood succession, and that Asgard was his.

"I will make you proud of me mother, for I will be a greater King than Odin ever was or Thor ever could be." He composed himself with a deep breath, shifted back to Odin's form and exited Frigga's quarters.

The stars shone brightly in the Asgardian night sky, each one watched over by Heimdall as he stood guard at the portal of the Bifrost. This watch would be a quiet one as the universe seemed to be at peace and even the war-like blue skinned Kree appeared to be in between skirmishes with their hereditary enemies, the Skrull. Heimdall watched as a Kree Dreadnought used asteroids for target practice to train raw recruits in the art of warfare. Smaller, one manned craft poured out of the Dreadnought to twist, whirl and spin through the asteroid belt destroying smaller space debris as they flew through it. The guardian of the Bifrost watched as the smaller ships began to circle and surround like a swarm of angry hornets, an asteroid roughly the size of Midgard's moon, before open firing upon it with torpedoes and blasters. Pieces of the huge rock flew in every direction as the Kree recruits whittled it down in size while others blasted its debris into dust. This is when Heimdall noticed a large crevice was beginning to form on the asteroid's surface, one that lengthened as it widened, till the entire rock split apart revealing a huge, massive, horned creature whose long tail whipped about wildly and it had cruel looking talons for hands and feet as it emerged from the asteroid's heart.

Alarmed, the gatekeeper sent word of this monster's appearance back to the palace, back to the Allfather, as he watched it effortlessly destroy, not just the single manned ships, but the Kree Dreadnaught as well. The guard raced away as fast as his feet could carry him to the palace gates where breathlessly, he relayed to the guards there of the creature's existence and one entry way guard quickly turned to sprint to the throne room.

The guard found Loki/Odin upon his throne listening to the council of the elderly Vizier as to the matter of Norn raiders attacking several Asgardian villages and farms in the western boarders and how to broach the subject with the proud and strong willed Queen of Nornheim, Karnilla.

"My king" the guard shouted hoarsely, "Heimdall has seen a creature of great strength and savagery…"

"And why would the gatekeeper deem this worthy of my attention?" An annoyed Loki/Odin cut the guard off sharply.

"He says it heads for Asgard my King!" The guard wheezed.

"Send for Thor" Loki/Odin commanded calmly "and have my son Tyr ready a company of Einherjar to meet this beast and destroy it."

"Yes my liege" the guard bowed before his King then quickly exited to carry out his Liege's order.

"Send for my son Balder, my old friend" Loki/Odin ordered the Vizier. "I will send him to speak with Karnilla about these raiders as he is the only Asgardian who won't get his throat slit the moment he sets foot on Nornheim."

"Yes my King" the Vizier bowed to leave but Loki/Odin stopped him.

"Before you leave, I would crave a boon from you and your daughter, the Lady Amora."

"A favor from me…and my daughter my Liege?" The Vizier's bushy eyebrows rose heavenwards as he looked at his Lord with some confusion.

"Yes old friend, I seek your permission for your daughter's hand in marriage, if she will take this old man for a husband" Loki/Odin continued. "I find myself in the precarious position of being without a Queen and an heir to my throne since Thor has abdicated his right to it, and none of my older sons has the right of succession anymore since their mother divorced me. I need a Queen with courage and cunning who can give me an heir, and, I know of no one else who has had the benefit of your great wisdom."

"I shall send for her at once my Lord" the Vizier bowed again.

"Good, the two of you shall meet me in the hall of records in the library where we can speak privately of these things" Loki/Odin smiled as he dismissed his councilor with a thought of what Amora's face would be like upon hearing of his request.

His mind was all a whirl with the alien strangeness of this massive place that Jane called "a Mall". It seemed to have no end of market places that sold women's clothing, children's clothes, men's clothing, shoes, cooking utensils, jewelry, and things he had no idea what possible use mortals had for them. Dressed in a light golden brown corduroy jacket, a blue t-shirt and jeans, Thor walked alongside Jane, (also in jeans with a denim jacket, a white t-shirt and grey tennies) carrying several bags filled with various clothing items she had purchased for him. As she had explained he needed what she called "street clothes" in order to avoid causing a riot by something Darcy called "fan girls" whenever he went anywhere with Jane now that she was taking time off from speaking engagements to visit with her mother again. The only instance that proved to be an incredible embarrassment was when Jane tried to get him to decide whether he was a "boxer" or "briefs" type of guy.

"Don't you think I have enough street clothes now?" He said with more than a little weariness in his voice, "We've been at this market place nearly the whole day. Is there no place to rest…" his stomach growled at him so that he added "…and eat?"

Jane stopped in her tracks and taking out her cell phone from her tan vinyl purse, she glanced at the time on its screen "Well I guess we could call it a day as you should have enough clothes for a week. So let's head for my mom's car and go home for dinner."

He smiled with relief at her as the two of them started for the exit doors as his stomach rumbled again. When they walked out of the mall doors they had to dodge cars, and a bus, to get to where Jane parked her mother's newly repaired and repainted red station wagon. Squeezing the car's alarm button to turn it off, Jane opened the driver's side door and flipped the electronic locks open so the Asgardian Prince could place his bags in the back seat. He had to struggle to get the shopping bags into the car, but when Thor did get them inside, he heard people gasping and exclaiming with disbelief. He turned to see what was causing the commotion and saw people pointing up at the sky and some were using their mobile phones to take photos or videos of dark swirling clouds that were forming above them.

"Thor is that…" Jane barely got the words out of her mouth when the Thunder god became enveloped in bright multicolored light and he, as well as nearly the right side of the car parked next to them and practically the entire left side of her mother's car, just disappeared.

Jane reached into her purse and took her cell phone out to speed dial her mother, who was going to have to call her auto insurance company…again.

"Holy mother of God!" a red haired man with a thick Irish accent, dressed in an old green jumper and blue jeans and carrying a sack from a men's store in his right hand, cried out as he spotted what was left of his vehicle. "What happened to me car?"

Both Thor and Heimdall had to dodge auto wreckage when the son of Odin landed on the Bifrost platform, "Why have I been taken from Midgard?"

"The Allfather has summoned you to deal with a creature that destroyed a Kree dreadnaught and now approaches Asgard" Heimdall replied. "He awaits you in the throne room."

"What kind of creature?" Thor inquired of the gatekeeper.

"Unknown" Heimdall replied, "But its savagery is horrifying, and, it is without pity."

A thrall from the palace stables stood outside the Bifrost with a chestnut gelding for the Thunder god, to hasten his way to the Allfather. As Thor strode to his mount, he realized he'd have to change clothes and when his foot reached the left stirrup he remembered that Mjolnir was still on Midgard, in Jane's bedroom, at her mother's house. With a sigh Thor mounted his steed and turned it to gallop towards the palace while holding his right hand out to summon Mjolnir.

Nanna was in near hysterics after the servant of the Vizier informed Balder that Odin had summoned his third oldest son from his first wife, the Lady Bertha, to the throne room as he was going to be sent to Nornheim to speak with Queen Karnilla. Try as he might, the blond wavy haired man could not settle his wife down no matter how many times he protested that he did love her truly.

"So you claim, but to that witch you run whenever she calls" Nanna screamed with her Vanir heart breaking, "I hear you on those nights, when you speak her name in your sleep, and the things you say to her."

Balder's eyes cast themselves downward to the floor as his beloved wife was right. Karnilla often came to him in his night dreams and he felt helpless to resist her, yet he had, so far, because his love for Nanna was strong despite his wife's gnawing doubts.

"I must answer the call of the Allfather my love" he looked her in the eyes and sighed resignedly "I cannot disobey the order of my father, the King, but, I will return before the sun sets in the sky."

He went to embrace his weeping wife but she turned her back on him and wordlessly walked into their bedroom with her head in her hands. Slowly Balder turned and walked out of his chambers as there was nothing left to say, nothing that would ease Nanna's pain or give reassurance of his faithfulness.

When he was at S.H.I.E.L.D., before the incident with Loki and the Chitari and before the whole Hydra mess, Dr. Erik Selvig had been given computer codes to gain access to the Hubble telescope and he was sitting at the outdoor roof top patio table with his lap top scrolling through the latest images of a large nebula that intertwined through several star systems. NASA had yet to name the nebula but Selvig knew he was looking at a branch of Yggdrasil, the tree of the worlds. Darcy popped her head out of the patio door and asked if he wanted any tea? She was making tea, or rather Ian her intern, was making tea, and would he like some of those digestive cookie things? She heard a grunt from him which she took for a yes and popped back into the kitchen to boss her intern around.

No sooner had Darcy shut the door when Mew mah went flying through the wall of Jane's bedroom, made a ninety degree turn to the left, before it could hit her while she shrieked in fear, to exit through the patio window, narrowly missing Selvig while showering him with broken glass, as the Uru hammer made another ninety degree turn, this time straight up, to quickly disappear in the afternoon skies of London.

When Thor reined in his horse at the palace entrance he was greeted by his oldest half-brother, Tyr, leading a large group of men out the doors. "Greetings brother, why are you and your men armed so and where are you headed?"

"The Allfather has ordered us to slay this beast before it reaches Asgard. I lead a company of men to a world called N'as-Keroth where Heimdall believes it will land next."

"Land, does the creature fly some sort of craft?" Thor asked his face mirrored his bafflement.

"No" Tyr replied hastily. "It leaps from one world to another using Yggdrasil to speed its way."

"Leaps?" Thor sputtered with amazement as he dismounted and handed the reins over to a collared thrall.

"Yes leaps, and with incredible strength" Tyr voiced his urgency as he started to head for the Bifrost, "and it leaves death and destruction wherever it lands."

Thor took only a moment to watch his brother's departure then he headed for the throne room. He would change into battle garb after speaking with his father.

When Thor reached the throne room he saw his father speaking to a worried looking young man with wavy light blond hair that was longer than it looked. Dressed in chain mail and his battle armor and in his familiar ermine furred cape, Balder, called the brave by many, was being exhorted by Odin to do his duty "…for the good of Asgard" with a hand of comfort and trust upon the Thunder god's half–brother's shoulder.

"Now go my son, and return quickly with Karnilla's answer."

"Yes Allfather" Balder saluted Loki/Odin with his arm across his chest as he turned to leave but Thor could see that Balder was not happy about this assignment and for good reason. His wife, Nanna, would not be overly enthused about her husband being sent to Nornheim. It was well known the Queen of Nornheim was a powerful witch and her twin passions were her hatred of Odin and her raging desire for Balder. Many felt that Karnilla had placed a powerful love spell upon him, a spell so great that not even the Allfather could break it, and, it would one day prove to be Balder's destruction.

"Is this my son that approaches my throne?" Loki/Odin looked on his brother with curiosity as he spoke with mild sarcasm.

"Yes father, I was on Midgard when Heimdall brought me back" he apologized for his appearance "and I thought it better to see you first, to find out the nature of this threat before changing for battle."

"The nature of this threat before us is not completely known" Loki/Odin replied. "I wish you and the Warriors Three to join Tyr, and, if this creature proves to be a deadly threat to the realm, then slay it."

"Yes father" Thor's right hand formed a fist and he saluted Loki/Odin with his arm across his chest as he bowed his head and backed up and turned away to head for his quarters to change.

"My son!" Loki/Odin called out to him and the Thunder god halted and half turned to face his father, "Be careful, as I do not wish to lose another son."

"I will father" Thor answered back as he then walked out of the throne room.

Silently Loki hoped in his heart that his brother would return safely as, other than Frigga and Balder, Thor was the only one who truly seemed to have cared about him in all of Asgard. Everyone else thought Loki to be a clown to be ignored, a fool to be humiliated, or a threat to be destroyed.

With the help of a thrall, Thor quickly changed into battle armor while another thrall, the child of the first servant, held his winged helmet. Donning his helmet, Thor sent the elder thrall to inform his friends to meet him at the Bifrost as quickly as they could and to the child, he ordered him to go to the stables and have them ready a fresh horse for him and to bring it to the palace entrance. Bowing low both thralls left Thor's quarters on their respective errands as their Prince wondered silently if Mjolnir would arrive in time or would he have to wait for it as he exited his chambers.

When Thor reached the outer doors of the main entrance to the palace he heard the familiar high pitched, metallic hum of Mjolnir as it rushed towards him. Extending his right hand over his head, the son of Odin caught hold of his prized war hammer as it crackled with electricity. Now let this beast beware as the Uru hammer was once more in his grasp. His favorite white stallion was led up to him as he slipped Mjolnir's handle into a leather loop on his belt and gathering up the reins he mounted his horse and rode off towards the Rainbow Bridge and the Bifrost.

Sif was the last one to join Thor at the Bifrost and Heimdall explained to her and the Warriors Three about the creature. "It has not yet landed on N'as-Keroth and I will set you down approximately where it will land" Heimdall paused and with a hard gaze continued, "but be warned, this beast shows absolutely no mercy to its victims."

"If it shows no mercy" Thor replied, "it shall receive none."

With that said Heimdall shoved down on his sword and activated the Bifrost as lightning flashed up to strike the ceiling and walls of the inner dome. The dome began to spin as the Bifrost portal began to rotate into place and when it locked onto N'as-Keroth the multicolored light sucked them through it and fired all the warriors towards the planet.

They landed on a crowded street in what seemed to be a major city with tall, slender built dog-like inhabitants who scattered in shock, fear and surprise at the arrival of the Asgardians. Females clutched their young to themselves and fled from the area as the males formed in groups snarling at the strange new arrivals.

"We are of Asgard" Thor proclaimed to the people around him, to try to reassure them that they meant them no harm, "we have come to halt the advancement of a heartless creature before it can do further damage."

Before Thor could explain further a fireball appeared in the sky and streaking downwards crashed not far from where they had landed. The force of the crash knocked everyone off their feet and damaged the surrounding buildings which cracked, crumbled and split apart dropping debris all around burying many people.

"Tyr, you and the Einherjar try to help these people. We will go to the crash site." Signaling the others to follow him, Thor sprinted off.

What they found was a kilometer wide crater that seemed to be a mile deep that billowed smoke and dust and the bottom glowed like a miniature red sun. The heat that radiated from the bottom made the Asgardians recoil back.

"Can you see anything?" Volstagg shouted over the din of the screams of frightened, wounded and mourning natives.

"No!" Fandral yelled back.

"We must get these people back" Sif called out as she helped an elderly dog-like man to his feet and turned him over to a younger male. Thor and Volstagg were removing heavy debris that had fallen on a group of people as the Einherjar rejoined them to help, while Hogun and Fandral cleared many more of them away from the crater site when a loud, deep growl could be heard to come from out of the crater.

A dull crunching thud preceded severe ground tremors that made it difficult to stand and the sounds became louder while the tremors worsened. The Asgardians backed away from the crater as a monstrous shape emerged.

It rose up to its full height and glared down at the Asgardians and then roared at them. "Asgardians, how good of you to save me the trouble of having to wait till I reach Asgard before killing you."

"Any dying here monster will be done by you" Thor replied as he withdrew Mjolnir from his belt as his friends and the Einherjar prepared for the creature to strike.

"Fools, Mangog has no time for the likes of you!" leaning down the monster ripped up a huge section of pavement, hoisted it above its head and with no effort at all, flung it at the assembled Asgardians.

Heimdall put him and his bay stallion down a kilometer east of Karnilla's great hall and Balder sighed in trepidation when his eyes set on it. Any moment now the area would be crawling with brutish Norn warriors and he drew his sword as he cued his horse to move forward towards her hall. He had not guessed wrong as a company of Norns bore down upon him with weapons at the ready howling at the top of their lungs. With a leg cue Balder made his horse rise up on its hind legs and strike out at the Norns with its front hooves who then backed away as they moved to surround him.

"I am Balder of Asgard you knaves" with another leg cue he made his steed hop on its hind legs while still in a rearing position and the Norns scattered in order to avoid the thrashing fore hooves, "the likes of you could never defeat this son of Odin and long has it been since my blade has drunk Norn blood."

A handful of Norn spearmen attempted to unhorse Balder but his blade sliced through the wooden shafts of their spears and he cued his horse, which jumped straight up and lashed out with both fore and hind legs which caught some of them off guard and knocked them to the ground, two of them never to rise again. This enraged the remaining Norns who screamed like animals and they charged him with no care as to how skillfully Balder used both sword and his steed to injure or kill them until a deep booming voice cried "HALT YOU FOOLS!"

All stopped and turned to face a giant of a Norn, a commander of ten legions, with a long, horizontal and jagged scar upon his savage face. "Kill this Asgardian and our Queen will take great delight in personally torturing you to a long, slow and agonizing death."

"I see you remember me, though it has been an age since I was here last Balthar" Balder gave a grim half smile as he remembered striking the Norn while trying to save young Loki and Amora from him. "That pleases me as I have not forgotten you, or the promise we made back then, but there is a greater concern for you to dwell on as our two realms may be in danger of open warfare unless I can confer with her majesty Karnilla."

"I would welcome open warfare with Asgard, if only to cleave you in two with my axe" the Norn Commander snarled at him, "even if it meant a death more horrid than any devised by Hela herself at the hands of my Queen, but for now, you will follow me."

The lesser Norn warriors made way for Balder as he kicked his horse to follow the Legion Commander to the hall of their Queen.

Loki/Odin left the throne room early as he'd grown weary of the mewling gad-a-bouts that never seemed to get enough of his attention for insipid and petty ambitions or desires. Thankfully he'd only have to sit the throne three days each week to hear cases and make judgments on their near constant bleatings. The raiders on their western boarders, whether they were Norns or not, puzzled him and he made his way to the hall of records in the great library of Asgard which contained all the Chronicles of not only the Kings of Asgard, but also of its many heroes as well as the histories of all nine realms. Loki/Odin ordered books about, and maps, of the western border villages and towns with their surrounding farmlands to be brought to him. The keepers of the library bowed and quickly went looking for the requested material. Loki/Odin commanded a very large and long mahogany table to be cleared off, and to bring wine with three glasses, as thralls quickly started gathering up the books scattered upon it in obedience to his directive.

When the last unwanted book was taken off the table, Loki/Odin sat down in a tall backed mahogany chair. The chair's arm rests were arms of dragons and each chair leg ended in a dragon's claw. The back of the chair was fashioned into two carved dragons in knot work fashion whose snarling heads butted up against each other. The librarians brought him three books that dealt with the history of the settlements along the western border. Taking the first book brought to him Loki/Odin began to scan through the pages to find, hopefully, just what these raiders wanted. These raiders were an annoyance to him as they killed everyone who could not out run them, so they weren't coming for slaves. They butchered and left the carcasses of every beast that couldn't be evacuated, and burned all the crops so they came not for food. They put everything else to the torch so they came not for booty and they left just as fast as they came, picking up whatever dead among them, so they came not to invade and conquer. Why, why, what was there about these villages and farms that they bothered to go through so much trouble for? There had to be a logical reason, but he could not see it and that proved to be a great irritant to him.

Maps of the western boarders were brought to him as the Vizier and the Lady Amora entered the Hall of Records and he gasped inwardly, upon spying Amora, as her beauty never failed to invoke a sense of awe in him. If it were not for the incident on Nornheim, that brought them together in the first place, would she even have bothered with the ignored Loki, hidden in the shadow of his brother? Dressed in a green gown that closely formed around her body and draped with a gold and green cape that was pinned to her right shoulder and left hip with two gold brooches. Her shining golden hair was graced by a golden tiara of metallic flames that melted into twisted knot work which disappeared into her hair above her ears. Oh yes indeed, Amora would make an excellent Queen for him he thought as he barely stopped himself from smiling as he watched her and her father walk towards his table.

"My King" Amora curtsied before him as her father bowed his head before Loki/Odin "my father says you have a proposition you'd like to ask me."

"More of a proposal you might say" Loki/Odin stood up from his chair and moved around the table, while a thrall brought in a tray with a pitcher of wine and three crystal glasses and set them down on the table across from the chair Loki/Odin had just risen from. Loki/Odin took Amora's hand in his, "A proposal of marriage my dear if both you and your father are agreeable to it."

Releasing her hand and turning about Loki/Odin reached for the pitcher and poured into all three glasses blood-red wine, one of which he handed to the Vizier and one of which he slyly dropped a small amount of red powder from a hidden compartment in the large gold ring he wore and hoped Amora didn't see him twist it around his finger to his palm. This glass he gave to Amora.

"Marriage my Lord…I don't know what to say."

"I would hope Yes would be your answer, but take your time to think upon this my Lady and when you are certain, then give me your answer" Loki/Odin raised his glass to his chief subjects and drank, smiling inwardly as Amora drank her wine and then he turned to the Vizier. "Now my Lord Vizier we have much to go through to ferret out the true reason for these raids on our western boarders."

"I take my leave father" Amora gently kissed her father's hairy cheek and smiled sweetly at him as she set her empty glass on the table, "so do not be overly long with work today as I shall be very wroth with you if you do."

As she left the two of them Loki pondered over the only difference between himself and the Lady Amora, she adored her father, even doted upon him, while he himself despised Odin and for good reason. All the misery of his young life could be laid at Odin's feet; perhaps the old bastard should have left him on Jotunheim to die.

Asgardians scattered in all directions to avoid the hurled section of pavement the beast threw at them but a handful of Einherjar were not so fortunate to avoid it and were buried under it. With a roar Thor held Mjolnir skyward and a bolt of lightning struck the hammer which he then directed towards Mangog and to Thor's amazement it had no effect on the creature. Tyr ordered his archers to let loose their arrows at the beast but their shafts bounced off its hide serving to only enrage it more.

With a deafening bellow the monster strode through the Asgardians as if they were wheat and both its fists and its tail a reaper's scythe. Sword, spear, arrow none had any effect on the beast, and not even blows from Mjolnir seem to damage it. Mangog caught Thor a devastating blow with his tail which sent the son of Odin flying into a building nearly a quarter of a mile away which then collapsed upon the Thunder god burying him.

"Thor!" Sif screamed as she ran to the Thunder god. So terrified that he might be slain she paid no heed to the monster that now reached for her. Catching the Lady Sif unawares with his clawed hand the brute squeezed until the sickening sound of bones cracking and her shriek of pain made him toss her away like so much rubbish.

"Sif!" Fandral cried out as he slashed at the creature's leg with his cutlass while he ducked under its fist to reach his fallen companion and cradle her head in his arms. Mercifully she was unconscious as he scooped her up in his arms to move her away from the battle as he dodged the fiend's fists and tail. A metallic hum went sailing over his blond head as Mjolnir struck the beast in the face and Fandral laughed as the son of Odin rejoined the fight.

"I will waste no more time on you insects, to Asgard I go, to destroy it and take my revenge against Odin for imprisoning me nearly four millennium ago" and with that said Mangog gathered himself together and leaped into the air to disappear from their sights.

"Sif, how is she?" enquired the bloodied and worried Thunder god of Fandral.

"Unconscious, but I do not know the full extent of her injuries. We must get her to the healing room and quickly."

"Tyr as well" Volstagg spoke up as he and Hogun half carried the eldest son of Odin between themselves to where their companions stood.

"What of the company of men that came with us?" Thor asked of his elder brother.

"That I cannot say, but many are dead I fear and whomever is yet still alive may be buried under much rubble" Tyr grimaced in pain. "There will have to be healers sent here to find them and bring them back home."

Thor shook his head in agreement and sighed as he looked skyward and shouted, "Heimdall!"

No sooner was his name spoken than a swirl of clouds appeared over the Asgardians and a light of many colors snatched them upwards towards home.

"The history of the western boarder starts with your Grandfather Buri and the first colonists of Asgard" the Vizier pointed out in the first volume concerning the mountainous west. "Legend has it that Buri fought a monstrous dragon that could not be killed so instead he transformed it into stone and created the mountain range known…"

"…As the Dragon's back." Loki/Odin finished for the older man as he used his hand to bring up a three dimensional image of the mountain range from the largest of the maps that were laid before him in order to study it more closely. He remembered Frigga often telling him the story as a child.

"Yes and the colonists called these three ridges, which created these three valleys, the claws of the dragon. The water from melting snow runs down each of these ridges which created the fjord that surrounds the northern most valley; the rivers and springs that intersect through the middle valley and feeds the large lake which sits in the midst of the third valley."

"Have there been any reports of these raiders befouling the waters?" Loki/Odin asked as he maneuvered the map with a wave of his right hand to view another portion of the western border.

"No my Liege"

"Odd" he scowled, "they destroy everything else but not the water. Why, what makes the water so valuable that it is the only thing spared?"

It was at this moment that an Einherjar guard burst into the hall of records and ran to his king "My King, forgive me, but Thor and Tyr have returned from N'as-Keroth!"

"Why have they not come to report to me themselves?" Loki/Odin growled at this interruption.

"They are in the room of healing my Lord for Tyr is gravely injured…"

Loki/Odin wasted no time in leaving the hall as he hurried to the healing room to see for himself what Tyr's condition was, and Thor's as well.


	2. Chapter 2

2

Upon reaching the stairs leading to the colossal entrance doors of Karnilla's hall Balder dismounted from his bay stallion and followed the lumbering Balthar up the stone stairs and through the great metal covered doors that were shut behind him with a dull thud. The Asgardian Prince ignored the scowls and growls of the Norn guards as he knew they wouldn't dare lift a finger against him for he was under their Queen's protection and certainly not while he was being escorted to Karnilla's throne room by their high commander.

When they entered the throne room the air was thick with incense and Karnilla's throne of ivory (which was said to be made up of the teeth of all her enemies) was surrounded by exotic flowers and crawling ivy-like plants, which were planted in a sunken section of the floor, that grew wrapped around two marble pillars on either side of her throne that reached to the far flung ceiling. She, herself sat upon it in a proud and haughty manner, as she cast her intense gaze onto Balder.

"Welcome to Nornheim my Lord" she smiled seductively at the Asgardian warrior as he strode towards her. "You may leave" she spoke to Balthar as she rose up from her throne to stand as regal as any Asgardian noblewoman but dressed as lurid as any barbarian wench. "All of you, leave us, I have nothing to fear from this Aesir."

Despite misgivings Balthar and the throne room guards did as their Queen commanded and Karnilla was alone with Balder. Under the flowing red over coat (embroidered in knot work fashion were monsters from Nornheim legends, with the white fur of a Norn spider-ape gracing the neck and cuffs of both sleeves) which covered what barely could be called a gown. Blood red it was, and attached to the right side of a gold neck ring was only a strip that barely covered her generous breasts. This strip attached itself to another gold ring at her left hip before wrapping itself around the front of her waist then connecting to the hip ring again. Her ebony hair had been pulled into a large plait that ran upon the top and back of her head and braided into it were the two long, thin u-shaped bars that held her headdress crown of shining gold that framed her face. The head-plate was shaped like the horns of a Norn bull with the stylized face of a spider-ape made from a large ruby in its center and framing her face were the gold plated teeth of a Norn devil worm also bejeweled with rubies. Upon her feet were red leather sandals with straps that wrapped about her legs to her knees.

"What do I owe for this comely sight before me; honors, riches, or pleasures unimaginable?"

"Truth, oh Queen" Balder inhaled deeply and continued "as to whether you wish to keep the tenuous peace that exists between our realms or unleash the ravenous hounds of war?"

In his haste to get to the room of healing he nearly forgot that he was play-acting as an old man and Loki/Odin stopped running through the corridors of the palace to pretend to gasp for breath explaining to several Einherjar guards, who'd come to his assistance, that he was fine just not as young as he once was. Only his concern for the welfare of his sons made him careless of his own as he dismissed the guards to their regular duties. At a pace more suited to an elderly man Loki continued to the room of healing.

As Loki/Odin entered the healing room he saw Tyr standing between Thor and Volstagg while an unconscious Lady Sif lay on the bed of the soul forge. A worried and fearful Fandral stood to Sif's right with a grim faced Hogun behind him, and Loki/Odin halted in his tracks as he saw the extent of her internal injuries through the orange energy form that hovered above her. He caught his breath, eye wide with terrible awe, as at one time in his life he'd actually had feelings for Sif, feelings which had died cruelly because of her imbecilic hero worship of his brother Thor, making him invisible.

"What happened?" Loki/Odin demanded of his sons.

"We could not stop this beast" Tyr wheezed as his chest pained him greatly, "He called himself Mangog and has sworn to destroy all of Asgard…" the oldest Odinson grimaced in pain.

"Our weapons were useless father" Thor spoke though a face that was badly bloodied and bruised. "Not even Mjolnir could do it harm."

"What of the company of warriors that accompanied you? Where are they?" The gravity of what his brothers had just told him was beginning to sour in Loki's stomach.

"Either dead or badly wounded Allfather" Volstagg reported. "We would need healers and at least three companies of Einherjar to go to N'as-Keroth to bring them back home."

"Go find my son Uller" Loki/Odin spoke after a moment's hesitation to a guard standing in the doorway. "Have him take a company of archers and two companies of Einherjar, as well as however many Healers that can be spared, to find them and bring them back as soon as possible."

The guard bowed his head, turned heel and ran to perform his King's command.

"The Lady Sif will be taken back to her chambers to complete her recovery when they are finished with her here" Loki/Odin turned back to his sons and sighed heavily, "And you my sons, after you have been healed of your wounds, must find where next this beast will land and stop it there…while I see to our defenses here…that we will be ready for it in the event you cannot slay it."

Loki/Odin was about to leave the healing room when he saw the remorseful look upon Thor's face as he held up his older brother, remorse and hopelessness? That did not seem right, not for Thor, oh no not for him. Not the one who led them all "…into the most glorious of battles" who was covered with shining accolades and honors, who single-handedly saved all the nine realms from Malekith and the Dark Elves. This was not like him at all.

"Thor, walk with me my son" Loki/Odin spoke as he turned to exit the healing room, "For I see there is something that weighs heavily upon your mind and I would hear you out."

"Yes father" Thor slipped Tyr's arm from off his shoulder and left with his father.

"What bothers you my son for something plainly colors the expression on your face."

"It's just a foolish, childish wish father and regret" Thor confided.

"Regret, of what my son?" Loki/Odin softly goaded his brother to tell him more.

"That Loki isn't here" Thor replied.

"Loki?"

"Yes father, despite his treacherous nature, Loki would have the cunning and the wit to defeat this creature. He would've figured out a way to stop it, of that I am almost certain of."

"What do I hear from the savior of Midgard, to the one who restored order across the Nine Realms after the destruction of the Bifrost…?"

"The truth father. You once called me a vain, cruel, greedy boy and you were right to do so, for I was and it was Loki who suffered the most for it" Thor stopped and focused his eyes on the floor, too ashamed of himself to look at his father. "I bullied him and my friends into going to Jotunheim, not to find the truth, but I was greedy to win more glory to myself and it did not matter to me who I put into jeopardy or who nearly got killed. It is because of me that Loki is dead; it is because of me he became what he was, his madness and his rage can be laid at my feet for I am to blame."

Loki/Odin stood silently in amazement that he should hear such words coming from the god of Thunder and so honestly spoken. He would have to visit this mortal paramour of his brother if only to find out just what it was that she did to change him so drastically. Was this truly his oafish, glory whoring, idiot brother that he grew up with? Truly it seemed, Thor had matured in the last year or so and could it be that Loki finally had a brother worth admiring?

"Go back to the healing room my son" Loki/Odin laid his left hand on Thor's shoulder in encouragement, "we will deal with this monster first and talk more of this later." With that Loki/Odin turned away from Thor so that the tears that began to stream down his cheeks wouldn't be seen by his brother.

"The only way MY kingdom would seek war with Odin would be if your father were senile enough to dare attack me" Karnilla backed away from Balder, her face changed into a haughty scowl as did her demeanor towards Balder. "What makes the Allfather think that I would be the first to break our truce? The peace treaty itself was written with the blood from my dead husband and beloved sons as well as a multitude of my slain warriors?"

"Along with a multitude of slain Asgardian warriors and my father as well, oh Queen" Balder reminded her as he continued. "Our western boarders are being attacked by Norn raiders who kill and destroy everyone and everything in their path and this we have from witnesses who escaped being butchered."

"There are no rogue elements among my warriors, they are loyal to me" Karnilla walked back to her throne and sat down, "they know my power, and they have enough wisdom to fear me. For there is nowhere in my realm where my eyes and ears cannot see, or hear, or my spells reach."

"Then I take my leave with your word of honor to the Allfather" Balder bowed his head to her and turned to exit her throne room.

"Halt! I gave you no permission to leave my presence Asgardian. Do not presume that because I know nothing of these raids you speak of that I am finished with you."

Balder found himself unable to move, not even his eyes as he stared straight ahead, while he heard the foot falls of Karnilla's sandaled feet approach him. He felt the touch of her hand as it was first laid upon his right shoulder and as it glided gently down to his chest as she slowly prowled around him, not unlike a lioness circling her prey. She took his right hand in hers and he felt himself moving, but not by his own will, as she led him out from the throne room and to her personal quarters. She walked him over to her bed, sprinkled with scented water and various flower petals and had him sit down. In a slow sensuous fashion she removed the over coat from her shoulders and let it fall to the floor while a red and gold light dissolved her gown. With ease she pushed him backwards so that he lay upon his back as his armor and clothes disappeared as his body was covered by the same red and gold light, "The day is young and I desire your love my Lord Balder and Karnilla will have it, and have it all."

Thor and the Warriors Three did not spend much time in the healing room after their treatments, though Tyr's wounds were considered too severe for him to leave with them so he had wished them success against Mangog, and a somber Heimdall explained that the monster was headed for an uninhabited planet while he prepared to activate the Bifrost.

"Are you the only ones going?" Heimdall quizzed Thor as he saw there would be no Einherjar with them this time.

"Yes" Thor replied, "I will risk no more lives as the beast slaughtered the elite of Tyr's palace guard and badly wounded my brother. We four alone will stop this beast or die in the trying."

Which, Heimdall thought with a sigh, is what will probably happen as he slammed his sword into the Bifrost control and sent them to their destination.

The place where they landed was an empty landscape with rocky soil and barren rocks that jutted up from the ground, some of which were quite large in size and towered over the Asgardians as they scanned the red sky for any sign of their quarry. Three suns blazed in the sky which made for very long and almost intolerable hot days and dressed in armor and clothing more suited for the colder Asgard Thor and his three friends began to feel the oppressive heat immediately.

"There" Hogun the Grim pointed towards planetary southeast, "the beast comes!"

They all turned to see the fire ball that was Mangog streaking towards the planet and Thor realized that the monster was going to land right where they stood.

"All of you link arms" as he began to twirl his hammer and reached out to Fandral who took hold of the Thunder god's arm just as Thor let loose of Mjolnir and catching its strap the Uru hammer flew the Asgardians away to a safe distance before the monstrous fireball hit the ground. Once again Mangog climbed out of a deep and extremely wide crater to find the son of Odin ready to do battle and he roared at them as he attacked.

With mace, sword and axe the Warriors Three charged to meet the fiend head on as Thor unleased a lightning bolt that struck Mangog full in the face, temporarily blinding the creature. Enraged, Mangog screamed as he covered his eyes while he felt something land upon his back. Volstagg had managed to avoid both clawed feet and the demon's tail as he hurled himself upon its back and with a bellow he swung his great battle axe as hard as he could, his intention was to bury it into the beast's spine but instead he discovered himself flying backwards as his axe just bounced off the monster's flesh.

This hell spawn had to have a weakness, it had to Thor thought as he threw his hammer to strike Mangog in the face. Once again he silently wished Loki were still alive, his brother's cunning was sorely missed at this moment. Nothing seemed to be able to pierce its hide; it shrugged off all of Mjolnir's blows, and even the lightning he called forth was useless against it, but they had to fight on, had to hope that they could defeat it before it could reach Asgard.

"Aesir maggots" Mangog roared as he clenched his clawed fists together and struck the ground with such force that all four Asgardians were knocked off their feet and onto their backsides. Quickly they all scrambled to their feet and ran in all directions to avoid being pulverized by the brute's massive fists or crushed by his serpentine tail.

With a bellowing growl Mangog leaped into the air to disappear in the sky leaving the weary Asgardians behind who were now glancing at each other with growing terror in their eyes as thoughts of what this creature threatened to do once it reached Asgard ran through their minds.

"Heimdall" Thor shouted to the sky and once again Bifrost brought its travelers home.

When they appeared at the Bifrost Thor ordered them to first go the Allfather and then to healing room, "Tell father that he must evacuate the city, send the women and children to the northern mountains and prepare Asgard's defenses against this beast for I don't believe that I will be able to stop it where it lands next."

"No" Hogun spoke up; "we will not let you take on this beast alone. We will go with you."

"Asgard needs you more" the Thunder god said firmly as he placed his hand on Hogun's shoulder, "you must defend her and our people should I fail."

Thor embraced his comrades then walked to stand in front of the portal, turning with a grin of resignation at his friends Thor gazed at them, "See you in Valhalla" as he was swept away by the Bifrost.

Balder stood confused and naked in a shadowy place full of mist as he heard Karnilla's seductive voice swirl around him like smoke. Here in this place of shadows he found that he could move but he was uncertain of what would lay before him so he stayed where he stood. Where was this place as he knew he still lay upon the Norn Queen's bed and where was Karnilla?

"Stay with me and I will make you my King and together we will rule this realm, only renounce your allegiance to Odin and swear eternal loyalty to Karnilla."

Suddenly she was there in front of him so breathtaking in her beauty and she reached for him with her hands which he caught in his own and with a strength that was crumbling said, "I am a Prince and warrior of Asgard woman I will not suffer to be your plaything."

"Suffer, suffer, fool you know nothing of the suffering you will feel if you spurn me" Karnilla growled at him, "I offer you a throne and a lifetime of nightly pleasures as you hold my heart" she pressed her body against his, "and all the passion that it contains. What could Asgard and that wretched cow you married give you that Karnilla could not give a thousand times over?"

With what strength remained to his will Balder pushed her back, "I am also a man of honor Karnilla. A man who honors the vows he makes. I vowed to love and cherish my Nanna when we wed and I hold to that honor, for what love could there be between us if that love were forced?"

In that very second he saw only mist and smoke in his hands as Karnilla vanished from his sight. He was alone and he wondered if he were trapped in this shadow realm and if this was how she would make him suffer. When, faintly, he heard a woman scream in rage and the sound of glass shattering and wood splintering. Balder gasped as he sat up on the edge of Karnilla's bed as it had felt as if he'd fallen from a great height and landed on hard ground. He was fully dressed and armored and as he looked around it seemed like the wind of a mighty gale had blown through her bed chamber as there was glass everywhere on the floor and the furniture shattered beyond repair. Karnilla stood several feet away from him, clothed once more and wearing the red over robe as she stared at him coldly.

"You have my permission to leave Asgardian and tell the Allfather that these raids are not of my doing, nor of any of my warriors" she turned and strode back out to her throne room and stood before her throne.

Balder rose from her bed and with glass crunching under his booted feet exited the bed chamber. Bowing to her majesty he turned to leave and as he did so he heard the clap of her hands and the doors to the throne room were opened by guards and Balthar whirled about to sneer at him.

"Escort him outside the fortress and see to it that he is unharmed as this Aesir Prince must return home."

"Yes my Queen, as you command, so shall it be done" Balthar bowed before her and then growled at Balder to follow him as they left her presence.

In keeping with Amora's wishes, after he returned from the Healing Room, Loki/Odin did not keep the Vizier over long in the library and after taking some maps of the western region he left to go to Odin's quarters. He ordered Odin's personal thralls to fetch him food and wine while he laid the maps on the King's private feasting table, reserved for private family meals and special guests and was studying them when the food and wine was brought in. After the thralls set their burdens down Loki/Odin ordered them to leave as he wished to dine alone and unless it was an emergency he was not to be disturbed. Leaving off of the maps Loki cast a spell of concealment over Odin's quarters and sat down to eat. Taking his choice of fresh fruit and vegetables, which he dropped onto the silver platter before him, he picked up a carving knife and cut a thick leg off a roasted Gamoth Field bird that was roughly the size of a five month old piglet. Slicing off strips of flesh from the leg with the knife he began to eat and as he poured wine into his silver cup a trace of a smile touched his face.

"If you wish to sneak up on me my dear" he took a sip of his wine, "you shouldn't wear so much perfume as it enters the room before you."

"How did you do it?" Amora appeared before him as her spell of concealment vanished. "Thor said you died in his arms after being skewered by the Kursed."

"He saw only what I wanted him to see" Loki shifted back to his real form and with a cunning smile explained further, "I reanimated one of the Dark Elves that I killed and cloaked it to look like me as I hid myself with another spell. I was masterful in my puppeteering skills so the only thing that monster skewered was a corpse. In one fell swoop I avenged my mother's death, gained my freedom from the dungeons and I've taken my rightful place on the throne."

"But where is Odin, is he dead?" Amora questioned him as she walked over to his chair and sat down on his lap slipping her right hand behind his neck to rest on his shoulder.

"No, he rots in the dungeons where the bastard belongs before I send him to Hela, who will no doubt greet him with open arms" he wrapped his left arm around her waist while he traced a knot work pattern from her lower stomach to just about her breasts with his right hand when she took hold of it with her left hand and stopped its ascent. "Not feeling playful my Lady, you aren't still married to Lord Erlick are you?"

"Gads no" she recoiled in mild disgust, "I discovered that, apparently I'm too old for him, as I caught him debasing some poor girl child of a thrall." Amora laced her fingers into Loki's and gave a small laugh, "Which is why I cursed him with a spell of impotency before I left him which should bring relief to parents everywhere."

"Once again" Loki laughed spiritedly, "you give me another reason to love you so my dear and to think that you would be perfect as my Queen."

"What makes you think that the people of Asgard would embrace a Queen, so oft married, and with as many lovers as I've had? Not to mention marrying a man as "old" as you."

Loki chuckled and grinned up at her, "My dear, you are the daughter of Odin's most high councilor and from the time you could walk and talk you boldly followed your father into Odin's court and sat at his feet, hopefully absorbing much of his wisdom, and were you not fostered by Queen Frigga? Did not my mother teach you to be as stately as any Queen as well as magic?"

"Do you miss her as much as I do?" Amora questioned him.

"I will always mourn for her" his expression turned to a pained sorrow, "as she was the one who placed me on the throne knowing that I, not Thor, was Asgard's true King."

Loki became silent, retreating into himself as Amora began gently stroking his hair with her right hand and then she sat upright losing his hand from hers and setting her hands, palms up, in front of her she waved them back and forth until a crystal orb set upon a mahogany pillar base appeared between them.

"What's this?"

"A little something to break you from your melancholy" she replied as she handed him the orb.

"A white stag" he exclaimed as he gazed into the orb and watched, as if it were alive and held captive in the crystal, the stag snorted and pawed the earth with his front hoof all the while looking far into the distance as if looking for does to mate with or fools attempting to capture it to force it to grant their wishes.

"Have you forgotten what day this is? Have you forgotten what happen to the two of us all those years ago?"

"Forgive me my dear, but with all that has happened…well much has been on my mind since Svartalfheim, but no, I could never forget that day or what we went through" Loki, with his right hand took a hold of Amora's left hand, brought it to his lips and gently kissed it.

"Karnilla was going to kill us both as revenge for the deaths of her sons" Amora pondered, "why do you think she so suddenly changed her mind when she held you by your throat ready to knife you with her dagger?"

"The riddle to that I do not think I could ever solve" he smiled at her. "Let us both be thankful that she did or…"

They both knew the unsettling answer and they quietly kept that answer to themselves before Loki broke the silence, "I shall endeavor to find a place of honor for this most cherished of gifts in my room as it should not be seen here in Odin's quarters."

"Good thing you had the wisdom to declare your room to be sealed off, even to the thralls who tended it for you, or this present of mine would get noticed. Even dull minds would wonder when it was placed with the others I've given you over the years and start to gossip, as slaves tend to do when their masters are not present."

"While you're here" setting the orb on the table next to his platter of food Loki looked up at Amora with a mischievous twinkle developing in his eyes, "would you care to join me for dinner and then…well shall we see what develops afterwards?"

"I believe I would as I like what I see in your eye you roguish scoundrel" Amora grinned back at him as she rose up from his lap to stand at the tables corner.

Loki rose up from his chair, moved it over a few inches then went to fetch the nearest one to her and place it next to his chair. He held it while she sat down on it and pushed it somewhat closer to the table and his platter of food then sat back down on his own.

Loki picked up his knife and cut a goodly piece of flesh from the bird's breast and set it upon his platter then he tore it into smaller strips with the blade of the knife to make it easier for Amora to eat as she helped herself to some dark purple grapes and to Loki's goblet of wine as it was the only cup available.

"There is one thing I should warn you about" Amora said before she drank the wine.

"Warn, about what?" Loki quizzed her as he handed her his fork.

"My father has noticed that Odin has picked up some new habits and dropped some old ones in the time since the Dark Elves were defeated and he finds them puzzling as if Odin were someone different."

"What manner of 'habits' are we speaking of?" Loki plucked off a strip of the Gamoth bird's leg flesh and popped it into his mouth.

"Well to begin with Odin doesn't sit with his knees spread apart but together" Lady Amora popped a grape into her mouth as she glanced teasingly at Loki, "and he doesn't cup his chin with his right hand and rub his upper lip with his forefinger when he's deep in thought but chews on the left side of his mustache."

At that point Amora swiftly stuck the fork points under Loki's chin, "Anything happens to my father and whoever harms him will feel the full force of my wrath."

"My dear Amora" Loki spoke calmly, "why would I want to harm the only useful man in all of Asgard when a simple spell of forgetfulness would be all that's needed to insure my continued rule on the Golden Throne."

Gently Loki pushed the long pronged fork away from his throat, "As he's going to be my future father-in-law why would I wish to incur your wrath by harming him?"

Amora was silent then she speared a piece of meat with it while reaching for his wine cup, "Just remember I love my father, as much as you loved Queen Frigga, and I will exact my revenge on anyone who harms him."

It was a good thing that his spell of concealment included sound as well as sight or Heimdall, as well as the whole palace, would have heard Amora's climatic screaming of his name as he made love to her in Odin's bed. The next time he visited the old warrior he would tell him of this tryst with Amora and how she had accepted his marriage proposal to become the next Queen of Asgard. Panting from their exertions they lay in each other's embrace, legs intertwined as Loki kissed her forehead affectionately.

"Won't you get upset" Amora whispered a trifle breathless "if I should see some comely warrior or ardent and randy nobleman and decide to share a lover's delight with them while we are, well when we are married?"

She traced a whirl in his chest hair while he softly laughed as he took her hand and kissed it gently, "My dear all that is meaningless, all I require is that you remain faithful to only me until you have given me a son to sit the throne after me. Once my son is born you may have as many lovers as you wish and I promise that it won't upset me because after all, you always come back to Loki, always."

"How do you know that I would even consent to having a child? And what makes you so sure it would be a son…you conniving schemer you…I thought there was something in the wine I had in the library as it tasted a little too sweet!"

Loki gave her a wide toothy grin and laughed softly, "My heir to the throne is already on his way thanks to the red powder I put in your cup, and you should remember mother taught me all about herbal remedies. One such herb being a treatment for infertility and there's another for the determination of the sex of the child."

Loki's left hand reached over to touch Amora's stomach and he gently caressed it as it would house the most precious thing in the entire realm to him for nine months and it pleased him immensely that the first born of his dynasty would be conceived in the hated Odin's bed. A fact he would not forget to rub in the old bastard's face the next time he went to absorb more of Odin's life force from him. Although while he and Amora did care for each other, she grew up as his foster sister, he seriously doubted that what they shared in this bond they had was in fact love, well the type of love that two lovers should have. If they were not lovers, then what could they be? Loki cradled her head in his hands and kissed her lips, then her chin as she tilted her head back as he caressed her throat with his lips while she moaned softly and then there came a pounding on his door and he could hear the voice of Balder. Loki sighed with disgust at this interruption and sat up in bed and with Odin's voice ordered Balder to wait as he looked regretfully at his Enchantress.

"Shield yourself with a spell of concealment while I hear what news Balder Odinson brings from Karnilla" Loki told her as he climbed out of bed and shifted back into Odin's form, fully clothed, and walked out the door of the bedroom then to the doors of Odin's chambers where he opened them to see Balder waiting.

"Yes my son" Loki/Odin spoke up, "what does Karnilla say of these raiders?"

"She says she knows nothing of these raiders and that it cannot be that her men are responsible for this barbarity for they fear all too greatly the consequences of disobedience to her" Balder reported to his sire. "She says she honors the treaty written with blood."

"And do you believe her my son?"

"Yes Allfather, otherwise I think I would not be here before you."

"Well done my son, you now have my leave to go" Loki/Odin clasped a hand of approval upon Balder's shoulder who crossed his arm over his heart, bowed and left his King to return to his worried wife Nanna. Loki/Odin was about to return to Amora when he heard the footfalls of many running feet as he turned to his left to see The Warriors Three approaching.

"My King, we bring news of the monster Mangog" Fandral wheezed as they stopped in front of the Allfather.

"Where is Thor?" Loki/Odin growled. "Why is he not here as well?"

"He has gone alone to try and stop this monster once and for all" Volstagg gasped for air, "and he said that if he cannot stop it we should evacuate the city and make for the northern mountains as the beast claims it will destroy all Asgard."

If this monster was unstoppable, if it should slay Thor…should lay waste to HIS Asgard…

"Begin to evacuate all the women and children and ready the Einherjar to defend the realm" Loki/Odin barked orders at all three of them, "and arm every able bodied man and strong lad as well. We stop this creature if Thor fails. Now go!"

Making fists and crossing their right arms over their chests the three companions of Thor turned and left their king to follow his orders. Loki returned to his chambers and shut the door as he hurried into his bedroom where Amora was already dressed and waiting for him to come back.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Amora questioned him with a growing anxiety filling her heart when she saw the expression on his Odin-form face.

"Thor has gone on alone to face this monster that calls itself Mangog, which slaughtered an entire company of Einherjar, and if he cannot destroy it I must evacuate the city and prepare to defend it from this beast." The green and gold light once again flashed over his body shifting him back to himself, "Take your father and flee to the Northern Mountains, King Enar of the mountain dwarves is an old ally of Odin's. If you take enough gold the old miser will take good care of the both of you, especially if you dole it out wisely, but don't let the greedy bastard intimidate you for more. Demonstrate a taste of your magical prowess and he will behave himself, becoming a most gracious host and whatever you do, don't marry the hairy old troll."

Gently taking a hold of her head with his hands he kissed her passionately, and with some desperation for some minutes before releasing her, "Now go and go quickly, for no matter what happens here with me, you hold the most precious thing in Asgard's future within you so keep yourself safe."

"And as for you" Amora placed her right hand upon his cheek and caressed it with her thumb, "do not make me a widow before I am even a Queen."

Concealing herself with a spell she left him as he transformed back into Odin and walked out of Odin's chambers to head for the throne room.

After leaving Odin's presence he was walking back to his quarters to take his midmorning meal a thought came to the Vizier and he stopped and headed back to the hall of records. While he knew Amora would be childishly angry with him for it, but he had to see whether or not he was correct in his assumption. If he was, then it might lead to whomever was conducting these raids and why. A servant to the head librarian informed him that the King had taken his leave and they were replacing the books the King had ordered to be brought before him.

"Take me to the records of land acquisition that pertain to the western borderlands."

"Yes my Lord High Councilor" the thrall bowed then led the way to the case and shelf where the record scrolls were kept.

"Would my Lord need anything else?" the thrall politely inquired.

"Only a small reading table and a pouch for any scrolls I wish to take to show to the King" The Vizier stated as he began to peruse through the titles on the scrolls

"Yes my Lord" the thrall bowed, and then turned away hurriedly with a brow that was sweating profusely.

The Vizier hardly noticed when the thrall returned with the small reading table and a leather pouch for the scrolls, as he had discovered something remarkable that would have to be shown to the King at once. So engrossed was he in putting certain scrolls into the pouch that he was not aware of the presence behind him until he heard a grunt and felt something strike his back. With a gasping gurgle he lost all strength in his legs and fell to the floor. The last thing he was aware of before losing consciousness was the sound of someone stuffing scrolls into the pouch.

When he overheard the evacuation order given by Odin to the Warrior's Three, Balder ran as he'd never had before to his and Nanna's quarters. Even though Nanna was still upset about his going to Nornheim he yelled at her that this was no time for petty jealousies as he searched for and found the small pouches of gold he'd been saving. Placing the pouches into a traveler's carrying sack, along with a few loaves of bread and a sealed bottle of wine, he grabbed her wrist and with their only child, his son Forseti following, Balder led his family to the long ships.

Balder made only one stop and that was to the quarters of his blind identical twin brother Hodr, and gathering up what food and gold that Hodr had with him, Balder linked his left arm to Hodr's right and led his brother to the waiting long ships.

When he reached the long ships and had his family secured on one, he reached for Nanna and kissed her long and hard, like a man who knew he may never see her again. She wept, but this time in fear of being a widow for she had heard rumors concerning this beast and they terrified her.

"My son" Balder turned to the boy when he released the child's mother and placing his hands on the boy's shoulders somberly looked him in the eyes, "obey your mother, and your uncle Hodr, and do all things with honor."

Taking Nanna's and Hodr's right hands Balder joined the two together and to his brother he spoke, "Take care of my Nanna and should I fall, do your duty as a brother."

Hearing this Nanna began to wail in hopelessness as Balder released them and quickly exited the ship before he was crushed emotionally. The gang plank went up and he stood and watched his small family fly away to what he hoped would be safety. A palace guard ran up to him explaining that the Allfather had ordered his presence in the Golden Throne Room and when Balder could no longer see the long ship he turned and followed the guard.


	3. Chapter 3

3

Loki/Odin orchestrated the evacuation of the palace as he had his older sons placed in charge of evacuating various parts of the city. Everywhere one looked there was the hectic chaos of food and gold being gathered as Einherjar, under the command of the Odinsons, policed the streets and halls of the palace to aid as well as protect refugees in their flight to the northern mountains.

Long ships were lined up at the walkway to the palace and on every major street in the city to evacuate women, children, the elderly and the infirm. Volstagg's heart was tearing in two as he lifted his screaming children into the long ship nearest his house. His youngest daughter refused to release his neck as she cried hysterically and an Einherjar guardsman had to help the Warrior's wife pry the child from him.

"Be good, obey your mother" he tried to be stern and fatherly with his farewell to them, and to his oldest, his son he gave this charge, "Take care of your mother and your sisters for you're the man of the house now. Listen to your mother for she is very wise and behave with honor in all things."

"And you, you fat fool" his weeping wife leaned over the railing of the long ship to kiss him, "try not to get yourself killed."

Volstagg grinned at her and then waved goodbye as the long ship rose into the air and his small family flew off to what he hoped would be safety in the northern kingdom of the Dwarf King Enar.

"PUT ME DOWN! PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT!" an indignant Sif cried out in anger as Hogun, the grim, carried her in his arms up the gang plank into a flying long ship, "I will not be shipped out like so much baggage when I can fight!"

"You are in no condition to fight Lady Sif" Hogun dispassionately told her as he walked to the center of the long ship's deck and set her down next to a weeping elderly woman of the court, "If you wish to be useful take care of them, a true warrior does more than just fight."

Hogun ignored the scowl on her face as he turned to leave, but before he disembarked from the ship he spoke with a tall, broad shouldered warrior who glanced in Sif's direction, nodded his head, clasped Hogun's arm in comradeship and then the Vanirman left the ship. The soldier walked over to where Sif sat and stood behind her with his arms crossed and a crafty smile upon his bearded face. A smile that Sif did not take a liking to as she glared up at him from where she sat, but when she attempted to rise he placed a firm but gentle hand upon her shoulder, pushing her back on her seat.

"I am here to see to your every need my lady" he spoke with a hint of laughter in his voice, "and at the moment you need to sit down and tend to the Lady Hakana."

At the sound of her name the old woman turned towards Sif and taking Sif's left hand into her wrinkled own began to weep all the harder in hopelessness as she was a widow with four strong sons. She knew she would become all alone in the world, for none of her sons had yet to take a wife and if they died there would never be the chance for her to have grandchildren. Her and her late husband's family lines would die out after hundreds of generations and be forgotten in the time to come. It was for this that she wept and died a little inside with each tear that coursed down her cheek.

In pity Sif patted her hand and with a weak smile told the Lady Hakana that things would be alright and soon she'd see her sons again. It was a hollow reassurance, Sif knew this but she felt the old woman needed something to hold on to even it were only fragile straws of an improbable hope. She then felt the long ship rise and when it was high enough it set a course for the northern mountains and then set sail.

It had been a young thrall of the Head Librarian that had discovered the Lord High Councilor and raised the alarm. Guards were sent for and when they arrived they gently picked up the Vizier when one of them discovered he was still alive. They made for the Healing Room as quickly as they could as the Head Librarian sent the thrall to inform the Lady Amora about her father. The youth ran as fast as he could to the Vizier's quarters where he found The Enchantress in the process of ordering her own thralls to wrap up food that sat on the table for her father, and to pack what gold and jewelry she had for the evacuation, and to find her father as he was late for his meal and could expect a proper scolding from her for being late. When the boy breathlessly told her about her father the shock nearly made her faint but a servant caught her and helped her steady herself so that she sprinted out of her rooms and headed for the Healing Room.

Loki/Odin took reports of the process of the evacuation and of how their defenses were being manned in the Golden Throne Room. He passed on encouragement to his brother's through the soldiers that they sent back with reports and assembled what he thought was a more than adequate defense strategy which he sent back with the soldiers. Loki/Odin would have three tiers of warriors with armed civilians mingled with them at the city's wall, midway into Asgard, and the heaviest concentration of warriors would be at the palace and here he would lead them into battle should the outer defenses not hold. As he dismissed all those in the throne room to their respective duties he caught the whiff of perfume and he walked towards the back of the throne room to the large flat shaped pillar directly behind the throne before slipping behind it and grabbing at the air with both his hands to catch something unseen.

"I did warn you about your perfume darling did I not" Loki/Odin spoke to thin air which became an enraged Lady Amora, wielding a long bladed dagger, and he backed her into the great pillar as she struggled to break his grip on her wrists. "Why this sudden change in attitude towards me my dear?"

"I told you what would happen if my father came to any harm" she snarled at him, "even now he lies at death's door waiting for Hela to greet him."

"And what makes you think I would be responsible?" Loki took the chance that no one would be lingering around the throne room, or, that no one would enter it by changing back to his true form as he angrily answered back.

"Because he was stabbed in the back, oh master of knives, when he returned to the library" she tried to squirm free but Loki held her fast, "a thrall found him on the floor near the records of land acquisitions."

"I do not know who may have done this Amora, but rest assured it was not me. I told you, your father is too useful to me to have killed and since he is far older than even Odin, time and nature would do that job for me" Loki released her left hand and took the dagger out of her right hand. "I promise you Amora I will find out who is responsible for this attempt at murdering your father, but for now you must get yourself, and him, out of the palace and to the northern mountains as soon as you can."

He released her other hand and pulled her body close to his and he kissed her with a desperate feeling that he may not see her again, despite all his manipulations and planning for his reign as Asgard's sovereign, then he let her go and she disappeared before his eyes so that no one else would see her leave as he transformed back into Odin.

It was obvious to him that the Vizier had discovered something important that was connected somehow to the raids on the western boarders and someone had gotten frightened enough to attempt to assassinate him. Perhaps it would be prudent if HE paid a visit to Karnilla, even if it meant revealing to her that her son-in-hosterage was still alive, in order to find the truth and put an end to this festering irritant. As she had no love for either Odin or Asgard he knew his secret would be safe with her, and it might honestly please her to know that Odin was in the dungeons and her "sword of vengeance" as she had referred to him on this day so long ago, was now King of Asgard. Turning himself invisible he left the throne room to make for one of the hidden portals he'd discovered over the years during his many nocturnal wanderings to go to Nornheim and Karnilla.

The planet where Heimdall sent him to was a festering, oozing swamp as far as his eyes could see in any direction. Gases bubbled up through the muck and actually caught fire in some places, Thor briefly held his hand over his nose as the air reeked of sulfur and methane. He could see no trees or hear any sounds of life, whether insect or bird, so that could mean there wasn't life yet on this planet so no one would be harm by the destruction he and Mangog would cause.

The Thunder god did not have to wait long as the now all too familiar fireball that heralded the monster's coming could be seen in the dense fog that covered this world and he marked where it landed. Whirling Mjolnir till he got enough speed up he released the strap, caught the loop and took off to where the monster landed.

Once again Mangog climbed out of the crater created by his fall and upon spying Thor roared in anger as he reached out a clawed hand to crush the son of Odin. Calling down lightning from the sky Thor smashed the end of his Great War hammer into the earth and the ground split and caved in causing both he and the brutish monster to fall into the enlarged crater. Whirling his Uru hammer above his head Thor quickly flung himself out of the newly enlarged crater and landed a few hundred yards away from it listening to the fading bellowing of Mangog.

A pillar of fire and steam erupted from the crater as gas infused muck and water fell onto the glowing red hot crater's bottom. Coming as close as he dared, Thor tried to look down the crater in hopes, that perhaps he'd slain the creature, but could not get near the edge as the ground crumbled into the crater and he had to back up to a safe distance. He was about to call for Heimdall when he heard the fiend roar and felt the tremors of it climbing back out of the pit. By Hela, just what would it take to kill this monstrosity?

"Puny insect!" it bellowed at him, "If the icy cold of space or the blazing fires of a sun cannot kill me, I who have the power of a billion, billion souls, what makes you think your puny weapons can?"

Mangog bared his bottom tusks in a snarl as he reached for Thor to crush him like an insect but Thor dodged his clawed hands as he began to whirl Mjolnir above his head forming a tornado that grew in width and in strength. Safe in the eye of this storm Thor whirled his hammer faster and faster as he rose up into the air, the tornado he created was now as tall as the planet's stratosphere and nearly a hundred miles wide and all of it was his to command. It sucked Mangog off its clawed feet and the monster was bashed about by hail stones that were as large as it and struck by earthen debris that blinded it as it flailed about. Lightning bolts as thick as freight trains struck Mangog and Thor was rewarded by hearing it scream in pain for the first time. Perhaps he could succeed in killing the fiend after all.

By his command it started to snow and the temperature dropped to absolute freezing and he saw the creature begin to ice up as snow began to bury it. He could see that the demon could no longer move as the snow balled around the monstrous form until it was the size of an S.H.I.E.L.D. heliocarrier. It was now too big even for a storm of this magnitude to keep aloft and the beast named Mangog plummeted to the ground and as it fell from the sky, Thor summoned all the electrical power of the lightning bolts to Mjolnir as he flew down to the ground with a roar and when he reached the planet's surface with a bellow he struck the ground a colossal blow with his Uru hammer just as Mangog landed. The ground split in six different directions as the earth beneath his feet began to fall away as the force of his blow sent shock waves throughout the marshy planet.

The area the size of Africa simply disappeared beneath him as thousands of miles away mountains rose up and sea basins were formed at their roots while the tornado he created began to dissipate. As he fell he began to lose consciousness, and he was dimly aware that he had won, and as his body gained momentum he had one thought, one word that came from his heart, "Jane."

At that moment the multicolored light of the Bifrost snared him and carried his unconscious form back to Asgard.

Heimdall quickly shut off the Bifrost and went to the Thunder god's aid and with relief washing the worry from the gatekeeper's face when he discovered that Thor was still alive, despite the fact that both of Thor's arms and hands were badly burned. Grabbing Thor's right arm he moved the Odinson to a sitting position while hooking his Prince's arm over his neck he lifted Thor off the floor and securing the Thunder god's right leg with his other arm Heimdall himself rose up from the floor. Leaving Mjolnir on the floor, as Thor was the only one who could lift it; it was pointless to try to take it as well, as Heimdall shifted Thor's weight a bit upon his shoulders.

"Oof" the gatekeeper groaned, "your mortal must be a good cook as you've gained weight on your stay in Midgard."

As quickly as he could with his heavy burden Heimdall made for the room of Healing and once he knew of Thor's condition, he would make his way to the King to inform Odin of his son's latest victory.

Karnilla must be preoccupied with one of her male concubines as Loki strolled up to her hall's doors, whose guards were completely unaware that he was there. To be fair, he was invisible, but that should have made no difference as Karnilla's awareness of something or someone magical was approaching would have alerted her to his presence. He calmly walked past the guards that lined the way to her throne room and past the ones in the throne room as he made his way to her quarters. Even though the closed doors to Karnilla's rooms were strong and thick Loki could still hear her passionate cries as she must be finishing a ride on a brutish Norn male. Loki knew the story of how the men of Nornheim came to be such brutes as they, at one time, were the most handsome in all the Nine Realms. They became arrogant in their vanity and when one of them, in a cruel jest made an older witch fall in love with him and then publicly humiliated her, she cursed all Norn men for an eternity of ugliness once they gained maturity, so that no Norn woman would want or desire them. If it weren't for arranged marriages there wouldn't be any at all, and, would have forced the males to rape and ravage to satisfy their passions and procreate the next generation.

Loki heard Karnilla's cries soften and quiet down and he surmised that her ride was over and his guess was right as a giant Norn with a scarred face, whom Loki instantly recognized, left Karnilla's chamber in somewhat of a hurry as he carried his clothes in front of his manhood and left down the hallway leading to the soldiers quarters.

Loki grinned cruelly, knowing that Balthar was very much in love with Karnilla, but she would have preferred to have ridden a handsome Asgardian stallion instead of the troll like bull that walked away. Balthar had left her chamber doors open and Loki walked in stopping at a discrete distance from the bed that Karnilla lay upon. She hadn't even bothered to undress when she took her frustration out on her Legion commander as it was obvious now to Loki that once again Balder denied himself to her. He waited until her breathing became normal and she was beginning to become aware of her surroundings and aware of his presence. She sat bolt upright in her bed and stared at the space where he stood, "Show yourself to me whoever you are."

"It is only me dear "mother" come to seek your advice and council" Loki grinned as he appeared before her in his own form.

"I knew the stories I heard about your death on Svartalfheim were ridiculous" Karnilla smiled craftily at him, "since you are so talented in cheating death."

Climbing out of her bed she approached him to take hold of his head in both her hands in a motherly fashion to tilt his head down so that she might kiss his forehead, "Now what council can Karnilla give to Loki of Asgard? Could it concern these raids on your western boarders that supposedly are carried out by Norn Warriors? Or would it be what to do with Odin, wherever you have him imprisoned?"

"Perhaps both" Loki spoke with respect to her majesty and the memory of her power as a witch, "because if your warriors are not responsible, then who is, and whoever they are they have attacked my High Councilor and the old man sits at the precipice of death to the heartache of my future Queen and your daughter-in-hosterage, Amora."

"So at last my "sword of vengeance" sits the throne of Asgard" Karnilla played with one of her many rings as she walked around the treacherous son of Odin, "and where do you have Odin squirreled away as you rule in his form I take it."

"He will continue to rot in the dungeons until I have siphoned off all his powers and then he shall meet an untimely end, but not before taking a young bride to be his Queen and fathering an heir to the throne. Then after a proper period of mourning Amora will take a "relative" of Odin's to husband and make him king and father to the last "Odinson" born." Loki grinned at Karnilla with a satisfied look upon his face.

"And just how do you intend on accomplishing that" Karnilla quizzed him, "when all of Odin's blood are well known at court?"

"My great, great grandfather Buri's first born, a son, went from his mother's womb straight to the grave. I intend on taking his name, Hadrian, and having him come from a small and little known family branch of Odin's brother Ve, all of whom have died out, but with a little magic, birth records can be forged and a name inserted in genealogies, and I will continue my uninterrupted rule of Asgard for the next five thousand years or more."

"And I shall at last have my revenge against Odin. You have done well my son by washing away all doubts that you would be my "sword" and my heir as well" Karnilla softly laughed as she gently stroked his face. "Now as to these raiders that plague you, I can send a company of men cloaked as wild beasts to spy out the land for you and give you warning of another attack so that you may deal with them in a manner befitting you. Rest assured though this is not the doings of any of my men as there is no one fool enough to defy my edicts."

"Many thanks o Queen" Loki bowed his head in respect, "but could you do me one more favor?"

Briefly Loki explained about Mangog and how not even Thor was able to stop its rampage or its coming to Asgard. Karnilla advised him to cloak himself in invisibility and follow her as she walked out of her quarters. She led him down into the lower bowels of her hall into a room that fairly reeked of magical power and this assaulted Loki's senses as soon as he walked into the room. Karnilla closed and locked the door behind her as he became visible again. She moved past him to walk down the stone steps to where a plethora of talismans, caged beasts used for sacrifices, dried herbs and pottery filled with potions and powders were housed. It was to a raised round dais that she led him to and he saw it was a pool of water, still water with a mist floating over it. In a low muttering voice the Norn Queen spoke over the water and it began to stir until an image of Thor's first battle with the creature appeared in it. Loki was shocked at its size and strength and at how easily it wiped out an entire company of warriors. The creature itself appeared to have a face that looked as if it were reddish brown carved stone. Its eyebrows seemed to be sharp pointed molten gold that thickened into cruel looking horns. Blunt, rounded tusks were revealed each time the monster roared and it had a rounded tubular beard that also had small golden upturned horns that covered its chin. Its bare chest, arms and legs were yellow in color with two murderous looking claws for hands and for feet it had three equally deadly looking claws. It also wore what looked like purple breeches as a yellow tail whipped about wildly.

Still muttering Karnilla changed the image to Thor's second battle with the creature and Loki studied it intently. It had to have a weakness as all things do, but what, and most importantly, where was it? The only oddity that he could see were two oval shaped black spots on the creature's back in between its shoulder blades and directly over its heart, if heart it had.

Again the image changed and Loki watched Thor battle this beast all alone using nothing but his command of the weather. Loki watched Thor create a tornado several kilometers wide and unmercifully pound the brute with all the power of the storm; rain, lightning, hail, and freezing snow before destroying half the planet to bury Mangog in an earthen grave. He saw a wounded Thor collapse and then be plucked up by the Bifrost before following Mangog to its doom, but, was Thor still alive?

Karnilla ceased her muttering and the images dissipated, "I thank you for your council and your aid my Queen but now I must return to Asgard and see if my brother is alive or dead" Loki spoke with great urgency while he ran up the stairs, but, had to wait for Karnilla to climb them and unlock the door as he turned invisible and left the cellar room of spells.


	4. Chapter 4

4

Heimdall stayed back and allowed the Healers to do their work on the Thunder god; Eir herself operated the Soul Forge, to determine the extent of Thor's injuries, and to begin the process of healing them. Heimdall had sent word to the Allfather, but as yet no one had been able to find him and he would not leave the Healing Room until he knew if Thor would recover or not. Heimdall could see Thor's chest rise and fall as he breathed and that at least was a good sign although his Prince had not regained consciousness which kept the gatekeeper worried and then he thought, should the worse happen who was going to tell Jane Foster and then he sighed, he would have to send one of the Warriors Three, perhaps Hogun, to tell her.

"Make way for the King!" Heimdall heard shouted in the hallway leading to the Healing Room and he turned to see Odin burst into the Healing Room gasping for breath.

"My son" Odin wheezed, "how is my son? Does he still live?"

"Yes my King" Eir turned and spoke calmly to Odin, "while his injuries are many he will live but it will take some time for him to recover from them."

The Allfather sighed with relief and it appeared to Heimdall that a great weight had fallen off his shoulders.

"I am not sure my Liege but I believe Thor has stopped the beast, although he had to destroy half a planet to do so, with your leave I will return to the Bifrost and keep that planet under careful watch least some other race should accidently free it again."

"Yes, yes you may go" Loki/Odin voiced distractedly keeping his worried gaze on the fallen Asgardian Prince, his son, his brother.

A chair was fetched for Loki/Odin and he remembered to keep his knees together while sitting and chew on his mustache while thinking. Loki/Odin would order the return of his people only after a week or so to determine if the creature actually was either dead or imprisoned in the last planet Thor was on. He would then hold a gala event to honor Thor's victory and again offer him the throne, and this time should Thor refuse again, it would be public and then what better time to announce that the Lady Amora had accepted a proposal of marriage from him and as their King it behooved him to produce an heir to the throne. The only one that he knew that would be outraged; first at Thor's abdication of the throne, and then of Amora being chosen as Queen would be Sif. It was more than transparent that The Warrior Maiden greatly desired the position of Queen, as Thor's Queen, and on his wedding night both he and Amora would have a good laugh at Sif's expense.

A moan from Thor snapped him out of his thoughts and he stood up to approach the healing bed as he saw Thor's eyes open slightly.

"You are in the Healing Room my son, the battle is over and once again you are victorious" Loki/Odin laid his right hand on Thor's left shoulder. "Rest and regain your strength."

"Thank you father" Thor whispered in a hoarse and weak voice as his eyes closed and he fell asleep.

"Keep me informed of his condition, and when he is able to be moved, have him moved to his quarters."

"Yes Allfather" Eir bowed her head and then went back to operating the soul forge to continue repairing and healing Thor's wounds.

Despite all his anger and bitterness towards Thor he felt strangely relieved that his "hated" brother was still alive. In confusion he wondered why as he left the Healing Room for the Golden Throne Room. Should not he be worried that his idiot brother just might see through his disguise and then denounce him as a traitor, for indeed he would not escape the axe this time if that should happen. Then neither would Amora, and what would happen to their child, if Amora was with child? Would Odin even wait till she had his son or kill the child along with his mother? Or worse, raise the boy to be HIS son and heir and never telling him of his true parentage and the boy would be one more thing stolen from him.

As he ascended the stairs that led to the Golden Throne Room he knew that somehow he would have to get word to Amora that if worse came to worse she should flee in disguise, possibly to Nornheim, and place herself under Karnilla's protection. Yes, with Karnilla she would be safe, his son would be safe and if the axe should fall, his son would rise up with an army of Norns and retake the Golden Throne, his birthright, by force. Loki would still be Karnilla's "sword of vengeance" through his son.

As he reached the pinnacle of the stairway and The Golden Throne came into view he was struck by the strange feeling that he was staring at the hilt and cross guard of a gigantic sword. Even though he knew that it was just an illusion brought on by the upsweeping arms at the back of the throne and the squared pillar directly behind it. Still, that was the appearance it gave to all who entered the throne room used for celebrations, ceremonies, visiting dignitaries and it was the one he preferred as it was grander and much larger compared to the duller throne room of Justice where criminals, as he had been, were judged and condemned. The last time he had been in this room he was sitting in the throne as Asgard's King, made so by his late mother, who for some reason thought that he could make Odin proud of him. He snorted quietly, as nothing he ever did or tried to do was ever noticed by the old warrior unless mother pointed it out to him and even then Loki's accomplishments were dismissed as inconsequential. The old bastard never missed to heap undeserved praise upon Thor's head however and no doubt was still going to make that dimwitted fool King despite the fact that he, himself, had been ruling Asgard for four years now and Asgard was entering a time of great prosperity.

Crops had been good as the weather had been very favorable to the farmlands; fish were proving to be harvested as equally bountiful, livestock were healthy as were the numerous children born in the kingdom. All due to the love and care he gave to HIS beloved Asgard, the most beautiful and shining jewel in all the cosmos. He smiled as he walked down the golden stairs that ended at the gold plated marble floor decorated in knot work patterns and across the floor to the gold plated stairs that led to the throne. This is where he belonged as he ascended the golden stairs to take his place on the ornate Golden Throne; HE was the one who had truly been born a KING.

As he sat the throne his heart trilled within his breast which made him want to scream ecstatically as the dreams of childhood were now reality, but for safety sake he was quiet as he waited to hear from his other "sons" as to the progress of the evacuation and if there was anything from Heimdall that needed reporting about the beast, as well as whatever Thor's condition would be.

Amora made sure her father was warmly bundled up as six Einherjar guards carried the Vizier on a litter up the gang plank of one of the last long ships carrying evacuees. While the healers had stopped the bleeding, both external and internal, and had healed his head wounds received they said as he hit the shelf then the floor, he was still unconscious and that worried her to no end. The long ship's captain had room made below deck for the Vizier and the guards carefully carried him down into the hold. Once they set him down they formed a ring around him and the Lady Amora as the King himself had given them orders to protect the Vizier and his daughter under pain of death should they fail in this duty. The Healers assigned to the Vizier, Amora's female thralls, and the old servant who cared for her father were the only other ones allowed below deck as the ship rose in the air and made for the northern mountains.

He awoke from the oddest dream as Thor stirred in his bed. It seemed real though, and that gave him cause to worry as he thought he had heard Loki's voice, but that was not possible for his brother was dead. Dead because of him, because he'd been wrong about being able to destroy the Aether and once again Loki was the one who suffered, and died because of his stupidity. It seemed to take the longest time to force his eyes to open and when he did he saw his personal thrall standing over him with a smile of relief upon his face. The thrall turned and ran from his bed and Thor could hear him talking excitedly to someone else but couldn't make out what was said. He was very sore as he tried to sit up in his bed and he heard the servant coming back into his room.

"Oh no my Lord, you shouldn't exert yourself, Healer Eir said you were to remain quiet in bed for the next few days until you're strong enough to move about."

As the room started to swim before his eyes Thor smiled weakly, "Perhaps you're right but I am very hungry and I'd kill for a cup of mead right now."

"Yes my Lord I shall fetch food and drink immediately" with a relieved look upon his face the thrall quickly left to fulfill his master's wish.

Slowly and grunting all the while Thor moved to a sitting position while his eye sight cleared somewhat and that's when he saw the bandages on his arms and hands. He chastised himself for being clumsy as he must have been struck by his own lightning when he smashed his hammer into the ground to bury Mangog. He started to wonder how his friends were when he heard the doors to his quarters burst open and the sound of Volstagg bellowing a somewhat ribald drinking song as his friends entered his bedroom with Volstagg carrying a barrel of ale and four drinking mugs, Hogun carrying several loaves of bread, and Fandral carrying a platter with a very large roasted Gamoth Field bird on it.

"The beast is dead, our Prince returned victorious" Fandral laughed as he set the platter on Thor's lap, "let us eat, drink and make very merry."

"Where is Sif?" Thor asked when he did not see the warrior maiden.

"I put her on a long ship and she is now in the northern mountains" Hogun answered back, "because our dandy was too frightened to carry her on board."

"That was not fear that was wisdom" Fandral protested, "as I didn't want a second broken nose to have to be repaired by the Healers."

At this they all laughed as Volstagg poured out ale for all from the barrel on his shoulder and passed around the mugs, "To the Lady Sif!" he loudly proclaimed as they all drank to their missing comrade and to himself Thor said "To Loki."

After hearing reports from Tyr, Balder, and Uller about the evacuation being complete; not only in the palace, but the city and surrounding country side as well Loki/Odin passed on the news that Thor had defeated the creature but he was going to wait, perhaps a week, to see if the creature was no longer a threat before bringing the women and children back. Until then he wanted Tyr to command the guard at the palace, Balder the warriors at the outer gates of Asgard, and Uller to take command of the archers, warriors and armed men at the center gate of the city. Placing their arms over their hearts each one of the Odinsons saluted their King and left the throne room to their respective duties. As Loki/Odin watched them go a guard came to the throne to inform him that Thor had awakened and was taking food and drink with his friends in his quarters. Loki/Odin nodded his head and dismissed the guard to his duties and then scowled as he rose from the throne to go to Thor's room as he would have to tolerate the presence of those fools in order to see Thor, but once he did see him he intended to make his way to the northern mountains and see Amora and how her father was doing.

Loki had been right about the Dwarf King's greed and they expected outrageous sums of gold for every little thing done until a thoroughly exasperated Amora called down darkness and lightning to strike the towers of stone that had been carved out of the skin of the mountain so that they burst sending rubble falling everywhere. The little toads became much more hospitable to the Asgardians after that and Amora procured a well secured room for herself and her father to stay.

She was going out of her mind with worry over her father's condition and the fact that his body had grown cold during the trip did not help matters. Even though the Healers had placed warm blankets on him and were heating up gelatinous pads to place under various parts of his body to compensate for his lack of body heat he was still so very cold. If he would just wake up, just for a moment, it would ease her fears because if her father were to die she would be all alone in the realm as he was Amora's only living relative.

The room was not large but it had an enormous fireplace and one of the thralls had started a fire which now bathed the room in light and warmed it somewhat. Amora sat on pile of large floor pillows watching everything being done for her father while holding on to the thinnest of threads of hope that he would recover.

When Loki/Odin walked into Thor's room he walked into three fools made even more foolish by drink but when Hogun saw him he snapped to attention and slapped his arm cross his chest and bowed his head. The other two cretins followed suit when they got around to noticing he was present.

"Father" Thor said with a mouthful of meat which he tried to chew faster but Loki/Odin held up his left hand to quiet his son.

"I came to see if you had recovered from your injuries and I see that any worries I had have been allayed. Enjoy your rest for the next few days and then I wish you to take three legions of Einherjar to the western borders and patrol them to stop what appears to be Norn raiders from devastating the countryside, and after that, all of Asgard will celebrate your victory over the beast."

"Yes father" Thor managed to swallow down his food and he realized that somehow he was going to have to get a message to Jane about what happened and tell her that he might not be able to return to her as quickly as he'd like to.

"Good" Loki/Odin said as he turned to leave, "carry on with your private celebration and I will see you again tomorrow."

All four of them saluted him as he left and once out the door their merriment continued, although a bit subdued from before he entered the room. A week from now Thor would once again abdicate his right to the throne and a smile crossed his bearded face as he thought of the looks on their faces when he would announce his upcoming nuptials to Amora, his Enchantress. As things had settled down it was time to go to the northern mountains and find out how his Vizier was doing and how Amora was holding up. Though he was going to have to wait till nightfall before he could, he already knew how he would, for amongst Odin's possessions he'd discovered a charm that gave one the ability to shape shift (and had the ability to enhance one's own shape shifting talents). Loki would use it to shift into the form of a bird to fly to visit Amora, spend the night in her arms before flying back in the early morning so as not to be missed, as for what to do now? Perhaps a visit to Odin would be called for as Loki now had more news to tell the old fool and he felt like gaining more power as well.

Odin crumbled to the floor after Loki released him and he heard his son exclaim ecstatically, "All that power in the hands of a fool" as he looked up from the floor to see his son exalt in the life energy accumulated for over four millennia.

"Soon I will have it all; the throne, a young Queen, and my heir and as for you, well I'll leave you to Hela's tender mercies since it was you who condemned her to Niflheim" Loki grinned viscously at Odin before continuing. "In one weeks' time I will celebrate Thor's victory over the beast and ALL will hear him abdicate his blood right to the throne when I offer it to him again. At the heighth of the shocked silence of the assembly I will introduce Amora and proclaim her to be my next Queen, and just so you know, your great grandson, and my heir, is already on the way."

Loki stared hard at Odin for some time then continued, "Once he is born and officially presented to the people then Odin will tragically pass away from old age and after a proper time of mourning for "you", Amora will "fall in love" with a young nobleman from your brother Ve's branch of the family, marry him and make him king and I shall sit the throne unchallenged for the next five thousand years."

"And what of Thor, what will you do to him?" Odin wheezed when he was finally able to speak.

"My idiot brother shall live his life as he chooses, and I shall personally see to it that he goes into the Chronicles of the Kings as a warrior and hero for Asgard who spent the rest of his existence mourning for a mortal wench whom his father denied him the right to wed. At the end of Thor's days he will, no doubt, hate you as much as I do and all because of Jane Foster."

"Odin" had gone to bed early that evening and when Loki shifted back to his own form he produced a small charm shaped like a falcon's wing that hung from a golden chain from a silver plated box sitting on an alcove shelf next to Odin's bed. With a broad smile on his face he opened the chain into a wide loop and draped it around his neck. He hoped Amora would be particularly randy tonight as just thinking about her luscious body was arousing him. He was well assured within himself that she was with his child, this visit would be for pleasure only, and perhaps to find out how her father was doing. With but a thought he transformed into an eagle and flew out Odin's bedroom balcony and headed north.

Thor was well fed and fairly drunk by the time his friends left to allow him to get some rest. They left the food and what little was left of the ale and Thor gave it all to his thrall so as to not let any of it go to waste. His servant bowed with a smile of gratitude and took the food away to his family. It was rather quick how fast he fell asleep and he slept peacefully to begin with but then the dreams of Loki returned.

It was his coronation day and he was striding up the stairs to the Golden Throne Room. When he reached the landing he heard once again the thunderous applause and cheering for him on his day of days. The Warriors Three were to his right on the golden stairs to the throne and just Sif was to his left, but his mother and father were missing, and in the place of his royal sire on the Golden Throne was Loki. Loki looking resplendent in a woven golden chest plate that shined like a sun over a green shirt that left his sides bare and a green cape was attached at his shoulders. His golden horned helmet seemed to glow like a torch. His arms were bare, but for the green strips of cloth that wound around the palms of his hands, his wrists and forearms under the golden windowpane vambraces. His breeches were green and gold and his boots were gold. Gungnir was in his right hand as his left hand rested on the arm of the throne. Once again Thor walked down the stairs to the golden marble floor to make his way to the stairs in front of the throne only this time there wasn't any braggadocio from him. He didn't feel worthy of all the praise being thrown at him and he was very uncomfortable because of that.

When he reached the foot of the stairs he knelt and took off his winged helmet, just as before. He looked up at Sif and gave her a weak smile which she returned with a look of pride. At that moment Loki stood up and slammed Gungnir's point into the floor and there came silence.

"Thor Odinson" Loki spoke in all solemnity, "the heir, the first born, so long entrusted with the mighty hammer Mjolnir, forged in the heart of a dying star, its power has no equal, as a weapon to destroy or as a tool to build. 'Tis a fit companion for a King. I have defended Asgard and the lives of the innocent across the Nine Realms from the time of the great beginning. Though the day has come…"

Nearly every word was the same as what his father had spoken years ago when he was brash, thoughtless, selfish, and uncontrollable. With each word spoken Thor's head hung a little lower with the regrets he felt and the sorrow as he still mourned for Loki. Loki who would never know how badly Thor wanted his forgiveness for all he had put his younger brother through.

Loki slowly began to walk down the stairs towards Thor and he began to change as he did so. A green and gold light slowly traveled over Loki's body and his skin began to turn blue, "Do you swear to guard the Nine Realms?"

"I swear" Thor replied just as he had the first time as he watched the light change Loki's Asgardian armor for Jotun jade body armor. The chest plate, shirt and vambraces disappeared as they were replaced by a shoulder piece that went from Loki's left shoulder to his neck and a large piece of jade covered his left pectoral muscle.

"And do you swear to preserve the peace?" His horned helmet vanished to be replaced with a jade diadem encircling Loki's head with two flattened brow pieces that held a yellow jewel on his forehead. On either side it had a set of three spiked horns in graduated sizes as Thor could now see Jotun body scarring upon Loki's face and his eyes were now red.

"I swear" Thor answered back as Loki's green cape became a cape of leathery skin from a Jotun Rilsac beast that was attached to the front and back of the shoulder jade piece and draped over his right shoulder.

"Do you swear to cast aside all selfish ambition and pledge yourself only to the good of the Realms?" Loki's breaches disappeared to be replaced with a loin cloth made from a Rilsac whose front fold, decorated in geometric patterns with inlaid jade, went past Loki's knees as his boots vaporized and Loki was bare foot.

"I swear" Thor spoke as he wondered at Loki's appearance even though he'd known since after the Bifrost had been destroyed that Loki was half Jotun…but to actually see the Jotun part of his brother was proving to be disturbing to the Thunder god.

Loki was silent and the solemn look on his face was replaced by a nervous look and he stared down at Thor and then he spoke, "How do I look?"

With a hint of a smile on his face, for that was the question he'd asked Loki so long ago. Thor looked up at his brother and replied with the answer that Loki himself had given to him, "Like a King."

With a bit of a start, Thor woke up. He stared at the ceiling briefly then sat up in his bed. He was feeling stronger so he made an attempt to get out of bed and that's when he noticed his legs and feet were also wrapped up in bandages. He shook his head in surprise at the fact that he hadn't electrocuted himself, but he wasn't sure as to whether the monster Mangog was truly dead. Could he have killed a thing as powerful as a billion, billion souls, who could survive the cold vacuum of space and leap frog from one planet to another?

On unsteady feet he rose up from his bed and managed to stand up. Well that was a good sign as he tried to take a step forward and nearly fell over. He regained his balance and tried again but this time he took a shorter step and was rewarded by staying on his feet. He managed to walk over to an old and seldom used reading table and pulling the chair away from it he sat down in front of it and a memory came to mind of a brief conversation Loki had once with him about this desk.

"You never read anything at this desk so why do you still keep it?"

"Because mother gave it to me and I use it for other things."

"Such as piling junk upon it that only gathers dust" came back Loki's annoying retort just before he threw something at Loki, which missed as his younger brother ran out of the room laughing.

Thor looked at the old desk and yes he had piled junk upon it and it definitely was dusty. His right hand moved to his forehead and he leaned into it slightly as he quietly wept in mourning for his brother.

THIS WAS GLORIOUS! Soaring in the heavens, coasting on the wind currents as Loki flew north to the mountain kingdom of King Enar, he would definitely have to do this again. He climbed above the clouds and he saw the peaks of the Northern Mountains not too far away. Soon he would be in the Enchantress' arms getting drunk on passion and pleasure and even if she wasn't with child yet, she soon would be. What enjoyment that would bring. What wonderful enjoyment indeed as he descended from the clouds and flew towards the palace of King Enar.

It took some searching but Loki finally found where Amora had secured a room for herself and her father. He landed on one of the four narrow windows and then flapping his wings he landed on the floor. A small fire was burning in a large fireplace and it cast a dim glow in the room. He shifted back to himself and after his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he spotted Amora half draped over a short dwarfish bed with two feet visible under blankets and a sick feeling hit his stomach. The Vizier, Amora's father, was dead.

Softly, slowly he walked to the bed making no noise at all and Amora had no idea that he was present even when he stopped just inches from her, "Amora?"

He heard a whimper from her as she picked her head up from her father's chest to half sit up and she sniffed while wiping her nose with the back of her hand. Her eyes were puffy and her face was smeared with tear streaked make up.

Her eyes were blurry as were her other senses and it took her mind, dulled by grief and confusion, time to realize who was standing next to her, calling her name in the dark. Blinking away her tears she became composed enough to recognize him. Kneeling down he reached out to touch her shoulder and in gasps and jerky motions she reached out to encircle his neck with her arms as she wept anew upon his shoulder.

"I swear to you Amora I will find out who murdered your father and then I'll leave them to your tender mercies" Loki kissed the top of her head, "You have my promise."

He heard nothing but a groan from her as she contorted her body somewhat as she continued to cry. In doing so she slipped off the bed and her body began to shake. Loki looked down at her face and it seemed to be gripped in agony as she gasped then cried louder and he realized that if her cries became any louder it would attract the attention of guards so he mumbled a spell of concealment to avoid interruptions. Her fingernails dug into his shirt and she seemed to go into a spasm as she gasped for air and whimpering. The last time he'd seen her like this was when they were held hostage by Karnilla, threatened with death, and the two of them were cowering in a corner of an unused nursery awaiting their fate. Fear had plunged her into a dark depression. Long ago it had been the fear of death, but now Loki surmised, it was the fear of being all alone that mauled her beautiful body and her heart. Carefully he picked her up as he rose to his full height and carried her over to the large floor pillows and he gently laid her down on them.

She wouldn't let go of him and he lay next to her wrapping his arms about her to pull her close to him. Not exactly what he had in mind, but his mind raced back over what she had told him about her father's attack. He would have to talk to the guards that took the Vizier to the Healing Room and the Head Librarian as well, and if he did not hear from Karnilla's spies soon he would go himself to the western boarders and spy out the land.

Dawn was breaking over the horizon when Loki woke up. Amora had her head on his shoulder and tucked under his chin and he noticed she was sound asleep. Her eyes were puffy and red and most of her makeup had rubbed off during the night. He stroked her face with the back of his fingers and as he did so a green and gold light restored her makeup. The touch of his hand made her stir from her sleep and she blinked as she woke up, "Loki…how…how long have you been here and how long have I been asleep?"

"I've been here for most of the night and you fell asleep nearly five hours ago."

"Father…"

"Yes, I figured that your father died shortly after you arrived" he watched her rise up on her right elbow to look in the direction of the bed where the Vizier lay unmoving, "you went into another deep depression and I stayed with you, but now" he rose up to his feet, "I have to return to Asgard before 'Odin' is missed."

"No please, stay with me, I don't want to be alone" she began to panic as she climbed to her feet and caught a hold of Loki's shirt with a strong grip.

"I must go" Loki took her hands in his and pulled them from his shirt, "have guards move your father's body to one of the long ships and bring him back to Asgard for the funeral."

"But the beast?"

"Thor has dealt with the monster and it is either dead or imprisoned on a dead world so it will be safe to come back home" Loki released her left hand and he pulled her head to his to kiss her red lips. "You won't be alone my dear, you'll always have Loki."

"And besides, tonight in Asgard I will make up for what we missed this past night when you join me in Odin's bed…permanently my Queen" a final quick kiss and Loki let her go and went to the windows where he transformed into the eagle again and flew off.

Amora went to the window and watched him fly off until she could no longer see him, turning away from the window she waved her right hand in front of her face to smear her makeup again and walked to the door to her room to open it. She gave an order to the guards to fetch a litter and her thralls as the Vizier was dead and she would take his body back to Asgard as soon as possible. Nodding their heads they crossed their arms over their chest in salute then left to do her bidding.

Word of the Vizier's death spread quickly among the Asgardians in their refugee camp and they lined up to see him carried to a long ship with his daughter, with a black blanket draped around her as there had been no time for bringing clothes, walking behind the litter. The people bowed and some even threw wild flowers in front of the guards as they passed. One woman, whom Amora recognized as a lady of the court, seemed to be aside herself with grief as a young maiden with an intense gaze stood next to her with the older woman's right arm draped over the girl's shoulder. Amora had the feeling she'd seen the girl before but she knew in her heart that she hadn't. With a polite smile Amora acknowledged the small tokens of respect for her father as her eyes watered up but she was determined not to cry in front of the masses, as it was not her way. Her entourage followed her up the gang plank and down into the long ships' hold. Once the ships' captain heard from the Lady Amora he ordered the ship to rise and head home, to Asgard


	5. Chapter 5

5

Heimdall spotted the long ship's arrival when it was still miles away from the city and he sent one of the company of guards, which Loki/Odin had ordered to stay on the Bifrost, to the throne room to inform the Allfather of its coming. Loki/Odin walked out of the front palace doors as the long ship descended and he saw Amora climbing up from the ships' hold on the arm of an Einherjar. He met her at the foot of the gang plank, "Why have you returned so soon? I have not given word for anyone to return from the northern mountains."

"My father died before night fall my King and I am returning his body for his funeral" Amora spoke up with her eyes starting to tear up and race down her cheeks.

"Dead?" Loki/Odin play acted shock and disbelief and from the corner of his one good eye Loki/Odin saw the guards bring up a litter with the Vizier's blanket covered body on it, "You have my deepest sympathies child, he was a wise councilor, and a good friend."

"Thank you Allfather" Amora bowed her head to her King. "If I may take my leave sire, I must prepare my father's body for tonight."

"Yes, of course, you have my leave" Loki/Odin responded, "and all of Asgard will honor him tonight."

With a nod of her head Amora walked passed Loki/Odin as her father's body followed her with her entourage following it.

Dressed in his purple robes of his office and wearing the tall, narrow councilor's tiara upon his head, the Vizier was laid in his boat with his arms crossed in front of his chest. Not only were all the men and warriors of Asgard present but the Royal family as well. With Thor at his right side, with the Warriors Three standing behind Thor, and his older sons at his left, Loki/Odin gave the silent command to launch the boat. Two Einherjar shoved the boat into the canal and started it on its journey to the edge of the world. Thor cast a glance at Amora and he wondered how she was managing to keep herself composed. Loki/Odin shoved Gungnir forward and his second eldest son, Uller, set an arrow wrapped with a pitch soaked cloth into a lit torch then drawing the fiery arrow back he took aim and then fired it. His aim was true as it struck the bow of the funeral boat and the flames quickly spread. Amora released a brilliantly glowing soul orb and it floated up into the sky as she said a final farewell to her beloved father.

"Should you ever be in need my Lady" Loki/Odin offered sympathetically, "as you are a daughter-in-fosterage, have no fear to approach the throne."

"My thanks Allfather" she glanced at Loki/Odin briefly before returning her gaze back to the burning boat and saw a brilliant sparkle of light leave the fire consumed vessel before it dropped off the edge of Asgard into the nothingness of space.

Very slowly the crowd began to disperse as they offered condolences to Amora who graciously accepted them, even from Lord Erlick, whom she'd come to despise. With her servants following, Amora slowly made her way to her quarters and when she reached them she dismissed them all to be alone. While she did not feel like having anyone around her, it seemed as if she were being crushed by the walls of her bedroom, by the silence of being all alone as she sat on her bed.

"Amora" she heard a familiar voice in the dark and she turned towards it to see a glowing apparition of Loki standing at the foot of her bed, "come to me as you need not be alone, not tonight or any other night."

Tears burst from her eyes as she tried to speak to him, but she found she couldn't as her pain was too great.

"Come to me, and like I did in that abandoned nursery, I will protect you from the darkness that gnaws at your heart" the figure of Loki extended his hands to her as his face shone with assurance that her memory of that incident would drive her to him. He was not disappointed as she veiled herself with a spell of concealment and left her rooms as he dissolved the apparition.

Muttering a spell that would dull the senses of the guards outside Odin's chambers she walked passed them, opened the doors to the Allfather's rooms and stepped inside. She turned about and shut the doors and the guards were none the wiser of her presence as Amora turned around to see Loki standing behind her with his arms opened to receive her. With a soft cry she ran to him and felt the embrace of his strong arms as she wept upon his shoulder.

Gently Loki led her to Odin's bedroom and to the large bed of his step-father. He'd already pulled the covers back as he scooped her up into his arms while a green and gold light dissolved their clothes. He gently laid her down and laid himself next to her to hold her closely to himself as she wept in mourning for her father. He reached down to pull the bed covers over the two of them as he would wait till her depression passed, then he would gently make love to her, but for now he was her protector against the dark fear that ravaged her soul.

Thor went straight to his room when it was stated that there would be no funeral feast to honor the Vizier as the Lady Amora was not up to it and the uncertainty of the monster Mangog's defeat left no time to prepare any sort of celebration. A few more days of rest and he would be in the western boarders looking for Norn raiders. His personal thrall helped him out of his armor and into his bed clothes, as his arms and legs were still bandaged, and his body was still stiff and sore from battling the beast. Thor requested a glass of wine be brought to him as he was not yet ready to retire and as the servant bowed to leave an idea came to Thor and stopping the thrall he ordered, "Have my brother Hermodr come to me as I need him to take a message to Midgard for me."

"Yes my lord, at once" the thrall bowed again and left his presence.

The thrall returned quickly with both glass of wine and the royal Messenger, Thor's half-brother Hermodr. Thor dismissed the thrall for the night and when he left he felt free to speak to his older brother.

"I need you to go to Jane Foster and explain to her that I may not be able to return to her for quite some time" Thor rubbed his cheek as he remembered the slap Jane had given him after she had found the Aether because he'd not sent word to her and he wasn't going to make THAT mistake again, "explain that I was summoned by father to defend the realm and that I must stop raiders from slaughtering our people in our western boarders, but tell her that I will return to her as soon as I am able…and why are you smiling so?"

"I'm a married man little brother" Hermodr mimicked Thor rubbing his face, "and I know exactly what this means. Of course I will go to your mortal female. Just hope she doesn't use her hand as her reply to your little message as I will relay it back to you."

She tossed and turned in her bed and then finally Jane Foster gave up and got out of bed to go to her mother's kitchen to brew up a cup of chamomile tea. Thor had been gone for hours and there was no word from him and he hadn't returned after being snatched out of the mall parking lot. She pulled on a flannel robe over her peach colored chemise to ward off the night chill that was in the air. Rather robotically she picked up the tea kettle from the stove top and walked it to the sink to fill it with water. When it held sufficient water she turned off the tap and took it back to the oven. Turning the front left stove burner on she set the kettle on it and went to the cupboard to find where her mom had her teas. She scrounged around a bit before she found the chamomile tin and setting it on the counter top she went looking through the silverware drawer to find the round tea diffuser and a spoon. There were a couple of cups upside down in the dish drainer and picking out the biggest one she set it next to the tea tin.

She sighed with worry as she filled the diffuser with chamomile and then set it in the cup. She wished she knew what had happened to Thor and what he was doing. The kettle began to whistle and picking up a hot pad she turned off the burner and picked up the kettle to pour in the hot water. As Jane did so she caught a flash of multicolored light from the corner of her eye that came from the patio and dropping the kettle on to the countertop she ran outside and flung herself at the form that materialized. She was about to kiss him when she realized that it wasn't Thor and with embarrassment she let go of him and backed up.

"Oh, ahem, I'm so sorry, I thought…"

"I know who you thought I was Jane Foster, but I bring a message from Thor and his apologies that he will not be able to return as quickly as he would like."

"Why, what's wrong, what's happened to Thor? Is he all right?" Jane felt like she was having a panic attack, "Can you take me to him?"

"I'm afraid I cannot do that my Lady as the Allfather has banished all mortals from the Realm Eternal" Hermodr continued, "Thor was called back by my King to deal with a threat to Asgard and he recovers from his wounds…"

"Wounds!" she gasped in fear, "How badly was he hurt?"

"His wounds, though extensive, were not fatal. He rests for now until he is fit to patrol our western boarders as they have been attacked by vicious raiders, who spare neither man nor beast. Until they are stopped he cannot return to Midgard."

"Oh, well tell…tell him I hope he gets better soon and ah, I understand about the other thing, just…just tell him thanks for letting me know what happened to him and that, um, that…"

"I'm a married man my Lady, I understand" Hermodr grinned and then backing up a couple of steps looked skyward, "Heimdall."

Jane saw clouds form and begin to swirl about in the sky above them and she heard the roar of the Bifrost as multicolored lights enveloped the messenger and in a split second he was gone. Along with at least half the fears she felt which had kept her up all night but that did nothing to ease the longing she felt for Thor. Hopefully his return wouldn't take another two years like last time. With a sigh Jane Foster walked back into her mother's kitchen and back to her cup of tea.

It was the sound of a bird singing that woke Amora. She opened her eyes and looked about for the source and discovered an Alfheim Morning Treasure bird sitting on a tall perch next to Odin's bed. Its delicate head was crowned with long hairy-like gold feathers that framed its face. The rising sun was glittering off its pearl colored body feathers giving it a rainbow effect and it spread its wings while its long golden tail feathers rose up to create a complete circle of shining gold with blue trim at the ends of each feather. She lay there watching the bird and listening to its beautiful song and she smiled.

"Now that is one of the things I've always loved about you my dear" Loki walked over to the bed with two glasses of wine in his hands, "your beautiful smile."

He was wearing a gold colored bed shirt, that went down to his bare feet, with green trim with embroidered knot work of golden thread around the neck and down the front, which was open to his navel, and he sat down on the edge of the bed to hand her a glass of wine. Amora sat up, holding the covers over her bosom with her left hand as she took the glass from Loki and drank.

"I hope you slept well last night and I hope you like your morning present" Loki drank from his own glass. "I went to Alfheim last night while you slept and brought him back for you."

"You went to Alfheim! Didn't Heimdall wonder why Odin would go to Alfheim in the middle of the night?" She looked at him as if he'd lost all reason.

"I didn't use the Bifrost my love. I know of several places of time and space distortions where I can travel to and from all the realms without anyone, including Heimdall, noticing."

He laughed when he saw the incredulous look on her face, "I'll have to teach you the spell of complete concealment that Karnilla taught me years ago. And yes, not even Heimdall can see through it or hear anything. Otherwise Heimdall would know of our, or rather "Odin's", little affair with you as you can be…vocal."

"Not that you're any quieter" Amora shot back with a devilish grin.

"I hope you're up to it tonight as I'm having a private dinner with all my "sons" and I intend to announce my engagement to you to them first. Then when I honor Thor for destroying the beast I will again offer the throne to him. When the oaf refuses again, I will announce our engagement to the whole kingdom. After all, a King must have a Queen, and most importantly, an heir to his throne." Loki raised his glass to her and setting it to his lips drained it of wine.

"Won't your "sons" and Thor most of all resent you, or Odin marrying again, and especially to me?"

"I suspect they will think I've finally succumbed to senility and Thor may react negatively at first, but with your charm and my firm insistence, they will eventually come around. When the Lady Bertha divorced Odin, after he forced my mother to marry Laufey, there was some family difficulty with his older sons when he married Frigga. She managed to change their minds about her and they all came to love and respect her. So too shall they warm up to you, after all are you not their sister-in-fosterage?"

"You've got everything all planned out then haven't you?" She looked up at him with some doubts still in her mind.

"Everything, including what to do if my little disguise is discovered, and should I be imprisoned again…"

"Or more likely executed" Amora cut in.

"Then you are to flee to Nornheim and place yourself in Karnilla's care. She will protect you and my son, and since you haven't noticed yet, does the wine taste a might sweeter than usual?"

Amora took another taste of her wine and then smiled knowingly at him, "You are determined aren't you?"

A green and gold light cascaded over his body dissolving his night shirt as he set his glass down on the floor then set hers next to it, "Very."

Thor's steps were slow and cautious after he dismounted from his horse and walked into the portal of the Bifrost where Heimdall stood on watch.

"Is there any movement from the beast?" Thor asked as he walked up to the gatekeeper.

"None" Heimdall replied, "and let us hope that it never shows itself again. Eir will be displeased that you're up and about earlier than she'd like."

"Most likely, but how is Jane Foster? Can you see her?"

"Yes" Heimdall chuckled, "she worries over you, even after sending Hermodr to her, and she misses you."

"Tell me Heimdall, have you ever heard of this Mangog creature before today?" Thor quizzed the gatekeeper.

"No, why do you ask?"

"At its first attack, it recognized us as Asgardians" Thor cast a puzzled glance at Heimdall, "but I do not recall either mother or father ever telling us any tale about this beast when we were children."

"Have you asked your father, the King, about it?"

"No, but perhaps I shall" and with that Thor exited the Bifrost thinking that is exactly what he should do, but, he thought a trip to the great library was in order first.

When he entered the library, the Head Librarian swiftly walked up to him and bowed, "How may I help you my Lord?"

"I wish to see the books on my father's earliest days upon the throne, his first two thousand years."

"Yes my Lord" the head Librarian bowed again then turned to fulfill his Prince's wishes.

The Librarian brought him back two very large volumes of the Chronicles of the Kings held by thralls who set them down on the same table Loki/Odin had used earlier and opening the first one in front of him he started to search for any reference at all to the monster Mangog.

The book began with the history of the final days of his grandfather Bor and a on again off again war with Vanaheim that continued even after his father assumed the throne. His father saw no benefit, no logical reason to continue the conflict and called a truce that ended the war with an exchange of hostages, the crown Princess Nanna for his older half-brother Freyr. He remembered vaguely his mother telling him about it.

His father never spoke of it, as it was the reason the Lady Bertha, his first wife, left him. Thor kept on reading and searching for even a tiny mention of the beast but came up empty handed. There were several references to a long and bloody war with an alien race but his father had gained victory over them and then had them imprisoned somewhere in space to pay for their crimes.

How could this creature know they were Asgardians? He knew it had clearly said that his father had imprisoned it nearly four thousand years ago but as he continued to search the chronicles he found no reference to a Mangog. Perhaps he should speak to father about it, but something inside him bade him be silent and the feeling disturbed him greatly. Why should he not speak to father? If father imprisoned the monster then why did he not say so when he ordered him to destroy it? Was his father becoming senile? Or was something else wrong?

His thoughts were interrupted when a thrall of his father came to him to say that his father desired him to come to his quarters for the evening meal and Thor left the books to leave with the thrall.

When Thor walked into his father's anteroom and saw his older brothers were also here for the meal as he saw them standing around the long table with his father looking at a three dimensional map of the western boarders.

"Ah, my son, good you've come in time to help with this conundrum" Loki/Odin looked away from the map to greet his youngest son. "We need to figure out not only who is conducting these raids but why as well. And possibly discover if the Vizier's murderer is involved with this."

"If they are I shall make them wish they were never born."

Thor turned to see the Lady Amora enter the room. She was still dressed in black and it looked as if she had been crying earlier as her eyes were puffy and somewhat red.

"Forgive me for being late my Liege, but I have been going through my father's possessions, and as he lived such a long life he has accumulated quite a lot of things, and writings as well. One whole wall in his bed room is nothing but scrolls which seem to be his personal journals." Amora curtsied to Loki/Odin when she neared the table.

All of the Odinsons bowed their heads to her and each offered condolences again which she graciously acknowledged. Loki/Odin offered his hand to her and she grasped a hold of it which got her curious glances from all the warriors present.

"I have invited all of you here, not just for discovering the real reason for these raids in our western boarders, but to tell you that I have asked the Lady Amora for her hand in marriage, and she has agreed to become my wife."

It became intensely silent in the room when it sunk in just what their father had said, and as Amora suspected, she was right about what their reaction to this news would be. Their faces were one of shock or shock turning to disbelief.

"I know how much each of you loved our late Queen Frigga, and as her daughter-in-fosterage, I too share that love and mourn for her as well" Amora looked at each Odinson as she continued, "I cannot expect you who are grown men, and those of you are older than me, to think of me as a mother. I hope I can be counted as a member of this family, as I have lost the only family I have ever known when my father died. As I know I can count on all of you to flush out his murderer and let justice be done for him."

Loki inwardly smiled as he watched her charm her way into the hearts of the Odinsons and even Thor seemed to warm to the thought of having Amora, The Enchantress, as a "stepmother" even though he suspected that they still thought he'd either lost his mind or was under some love spell.

It took some time for them to have any reaction but shock and it was Balder who spoke up finally, "We congratulate you both and wish you both happiness together."

"My thanks my Lord Balder" Amora bowed her head respectfully.

"Now let us turn back to the problem at hand shall we?" Loki/Odin led Amora to the maps on the table and released her hand "Our predicament is finding the motive behind these raids as well as who is perpetrating them."

"I have the assurance of Karnilla that these "Norns" are not any of her men" Loki/Odin explained to her "and other than being exceptionally fertile soil, there seems to be no reason that we can fathom for these attacks."

Amora silently stared long and hard at the map then reached up to move the image as she continued to examine it while the Odinsons bandied about different theories for the raids.

"Yes, there it is" she said softly as she touched a part of the mountain and the map image became larger.

"What is, my dear?" Loki/Odin asked, curious as to what it might be that she found.

"The dragon's head" she replied as she pointed to a particular rock formation that did indeed look like the fallen head of a dragon. Amora looked around at all gathered and softly sighed that they didn't understand, "Do you not remember the tale of King Buri's battle with the dragon that could not be killed? I remember Queen Frigga often told this story as it was Loki's favorite. He would beg her to tell it during our lesson times."

"Yes I remember it" Balder spoke up. "Even our mother told us the tale about how he turned it into rock when he could not slay it."

"Do you remember the only part never told?" Amora glanced around at the assembled men and then to Loki/Odin who looked at her as if she was daft. She produced a pair of earrings from under her cloak and showed them to Loki/Odin. "I constantly have to send a thrall up to your raven's nests to retrieve my missing jewelry."

"What does that have to do with the dragon?" Loki/Odin asked her incredulously.

"Like your ravens, dragons are attracted to bright shiny objects which they then steal" Amora saw the light begin to dawn in Loki/Odin's eye "they keep them in their nests and do any of you remember what happened to the dragon's horde?"

"That's why the raiders do not despoil the waters" Loki/Odin sputtered in revelation "they've found the dragon's horde!"

"That would also explain the viciousness of the attacks as well father" Balder chimed in. "What better way to be sure of secrecy, in order to salvage the treasure, than to terrify the inhabitants so that they abandon their homes."

"Balder, Thor, after dinner you will take a company of men to the western lands and search the waters there and if you should run across any of these raiders, bring back at least one for questioning" Loki/Odin commanded as he once again took a hold of Amora's hand in both of his. "It seems I have chosen my next Queen wisely."

At that point several thralls entered the antechamber of the Allfather with food and drink and began to set their chargers on the table and set out the mugs and eating utensils in front of all the chairs.

"But as for the nonce, let us eat" Loki/Odin voiced as his stomach grumbled somewhat and he led Amora to the chair to the right of his own, the place of honor next to the King, as his sons assembled around the table to wait for their father to give them permission to take their places. Amora was seated first and when Loki/Odin sat down he nodded his head for his "sons" to take their places.

Dinner went by in a very subdued manner because of Amora's presence, and as the Odinsons took their leave of the Allfather to return to their specific tasks, while Balder and Thor went to round up men and a long boat to head to the western borderlands.

"I think that went well, don't you my dear" Loki transformed back into himself after dismissing the thralls and ordering them to not disturb him unless it were for an emergency. He poured himself and Amora another mug of wine which he boldly poured in the red powder in her sight before giving it to her.

"I have the distinct feeling that they think you've gone senile as they are all aware of my reputation with husbands and lovers, and, they may even think I have designs on the throne as well" she took the mug from him and took a drink. "They may even think your life may be in danger now."


	6. Chapter 6

6

There was a chill in the evening air and Thor had put on a thicker cloak when he joined Balder upon the long boat. The company of men included some archers relieved of their duty from the center line of defense in the city. The King had put the Einherjar on a rotation schedule since it was no longer necessary for all of them to be on alert since Thor had defeated the monster. Once all were aboard the long ship rose into the air and took off.

"You're very quiet tonight little brother" Balder casually spoke when he joined Thor at the long ship's prow. "Could our father's upcoming nuptials to the Lady Amora have anything to do with your silence?"

"How could father do such a thing so soon after mother's death, and to become betrothed to Amora?"

"That is practically what I said to Tyr when father married YOUR mother and I say the same that he said; who are you to deny father happiness? You may not have known this but your material grandsire was a drunkard who ruined his family before dying a drunkard's death" Balder said matter-of-factly.

In shock the Thunder god's head snapped up to glare at Balder "That…that cannot be true!"

"Unfortunately it is" Balder answered back "and you should know better than to judge people by their past; for were you not the reckless imp that caused both your brother, and the Lady Amora, to be taken captive by Karnilla, and, nearly got them and myself killed?"

Thor had a retort readied but stopped as Balder was right for he had been responsible for that incident as he'd spotted the white stag and gave chase despite mother's warning not to. As Loki didn't want to be pegged as scared, he and Amora had followed after him on their ponies. He'd gotten lost and so had Loki and Amora before they were captured by the Norn warrior.

"It has been four years since your mother's death and while he may miss her, I believe four years is plenty of time to mourn, and now he wishes to go on with his life as you have with your mortal consort" Balder continued. "What other choice does father have but to remarry and hope to father another son? Neither I nor my brothers have any claim to the throne after mother's divorce and YOU renounced your right to it. Besides, it has been a long time since small feet ran through the palace halls."

"My lords" the ship's captain shouted from the helm. "We near the western valleys!"

Amora lay with her head on Loki's naked shoulder listening to the racing beat of his heart from their exertions from love making. His eyes were closed but she wasn't sure if he really was asleep. She placed her hand over his heart and felt it beating against his chest. Then she saw him smile.

"Are you contented in how things are working?" she queried him as she started to play with the whorl in his chest hair.

"With the possible exception of the monster, and your father's murder, it goes as exactly as I planned four years ago when Thor freed me from the dungeons."

"Before I came to your private war council and dinner I went to see a Healer…"

"You…you aren't…" with a start Loki rose up on his right arm and wide eyed stared down at her with anticipation.

"No, but she says my time is close at hand and if you want a son you'll have to work a little harder at it for the next couple of days" Amora softly laughed at him then quickly kissed him.

"And so I shall, and I'll enjoy every minute of it" Loki grinned mischievously, "just as you shall my dear."

Loki gathered her up into his arms, pulling her to him. He kissed her back passionately as his left hand slid down her back to the curve of her hips as she giggled with anticipation.

The long boat set down in the lake in the largest of the three valleys and one Einherjar striped down to his loin cloth and Balder handed him a charm on a chain, "Put this on as it will give you the ability to shape shift."

"How does it work my Lord?" the young red haired warrior asked as he studied the small golden wing.

"Think giant river otter and you'll find out" Balder grinned at the younger man who instantly transformed into a river otter that stood a meter at the shoulder. "Good, now over you go and bring up anything that you find."

The men had to boost the "giant otter's" backside off the edge of the long boat as the charmed beast had trouble scrambling over the ship's rail but once in the water he was fluidly graceful as any aqua dancer before diving under the water's surface. After about five minutes he came back to the surface and bobbed about in the water, "Think of your own form and you will shift back" Balder called out to him. The young man transformed back into himself and Thor noticed his hands were empty.

"Did you not find anything?" Thor called out to the warrior with some disappointment in his voice.

"Yes my Prince I did, but I will need a strong net and two strong ropes to bring it up."

Both Balder and Thor shot looks of puzzlement at each other and then Balder ordered a net and two ropes to be thrown to the youth in the lake. Shifting back into otter shape the youth dived back down and was gone for another five minutes before breaking the surface to gasp for air. After taking great breaths he dived back down and came back in another eight minutes before shifting back to man shape. He handed the ends of the two ropes to his shipmates and told them to pull. Which all did, with no apparent success, at bringing up whatever the young Einherjar had found at the lake's bottom?

"Tie the ropes around the mast and use the ship to lift it out" Thor ordered the men and they wrapped the ropes around the mast and tied them tightly. Thor then signaled the ship's captain to raise the ship into the air and he got the long boat five feet off the surface of the water before the ropes went taunt and the engines of the long boat began to strain and then the mast began to crack as the ship lurched sideways and three men fell out of the boat and immediately sank because of their armor. The youth transformed back into an otter and retrieved each man as Balder ordered the ship back upon the water to pull the warriors back inside the ship.

"Od's blood, just what did you find down there?" Balder yelled at the youth as he was pulled back on board ship.

"I don't know my Lord as it sits in a dark part of the lake and with the sun fading I cannot see it well" the boy gasped for air, "but it's big and gold."

Balder and Thor looked at each other with wonderment at this revelation and then Balder turned to the long ship's captain, "If we cannot pull or lift it out, let's drag it out. At any rate I will not leave here till I see with my own eyes this golden monolith."

The captain steered the long ship towards the shore then made it rise a few inches off the ground as the ropes went taunt and the engines started to strain at their burden. Swinging the ship from left to right the captain felt the unknown burden begin to move and he started forward as their hidden prize scraped along the lake's bottom muddying the water. Increasing the long boat's speed they felt the weight move faster through the water and then it surfaced. It was a rock of huge proportions and shone a fiery golden red in the setting sun as it came to a stop a few meters from the shoreline.

Balder and Thor leaped out of the ship to run to the huge rock and both gasped when they saw it up close, "Gold, it's nearly all gold! By Audumla no wonder it was so heavy" Balder gasped.

"And there are more like it on the lake's bottom my Lord Balder" the wet, blanket covered youth spoke up from the ship's railing, "that one was the smallest there."

"No wonder they slaughter so viscously" Thor gaped at this golden pillar, "as they could easily pay an army of brigands to overthrow a kingdom…" Thor's words trailed off as he shot a look of fear and dread at Balder, who returned it.

"We must get this back to father" Balder said apprehensively, "and warn him that there is treason afoot in Asgard!"

They made a few attempts to roll the rock of gold onto and up the ship's gang plank but it proved to be too heavy even for their combined efforts. Thor made all of them stand back as he unhooked Mjolnir from his belt and raising his war hammer above his head struck the rock and knocked off several large chunks of it. He struck it two more times and it completely broke apart allowing them to move the pieces onto a canvas laid on the long boat's deck as Balder ordered the captain to return to Asgard proper.

He'd shifted back into Odin's shape and dressed in a sleep shirt walked out on to the balcony of his antechamber to look over the great walled city, HIS ASGARD. As beautiful as Amora was, nothing could rival the beauty of Asgard and she was HIS. He felt the eyes of Heimdall on him, but Loki ignored it, after all not even Heimdall had been able to pierce through his disguise. Loki had completely fooled all of them into thinking that he was Odin, fooled even his sons. The only reason Amora had seen through it, was because he had touched her hand, and she'd sensed the magic that cloaked him and she'd intuitively knew it was him. He smiled ambitiously as he thought of the next five thousand or so years to come as KING of this Eternal Realm and through the son he would father from Amora, rule it forever!

Loki/Odin turned to walk back into the antechamber to head back to his, rather Odin's bedroom as he shifted back into his own form, and gazed upon his foster sister as she slept. Her hair was spread out on her pillow like some golden, free and wild thing. Her face was peaceful at rest while her body was molded by the blankets, rising and falling in graceful curves, her breathing was regular and he watched the movement of her breasts as they gently rose and fell. He'd always been in awe of her beauty, even as a child his eyes would follow her when he thought neither she, nor anyone else, was watching.

This brought the memory back to him of the first time he'd seen her naked, the first time they'd coupled together. It was on the first anniversary of their having been rescued from Nornheim and he was sitting alone in Frigga's herb garden. Hidden behind some decorative shrubs and an oak tree he sat on the ground just staring into space, not speaking or even thinking. Frozen with a nameless fear that wouldn't leave him alone and he had no idea of how to combat it. Fear was the intangible monster that no weapon could slay, and then, she was there. In a green and gold dress and green emeralds knitted into a small cap upon her head she walked through the shrubs and handed him a figure of a white stag woven from white painted branches. She told him it was for him since he didn't get to catch a real white stag. He took it from her mechanically and looked at it a long while before thanking her. Neither one of them could carry any kind of a conversation for long as they would collapse into silence and then she kissed him, hugged him and told him she thought he was very brave. Loki smiled and shook his head.

He'd been childishly foolish, charging at Karnilla, who was carrying a long dagger to slit their throats, with just the small knife that Balder had given to him. He'd never understood why Karnilla changed her mind about killing them both as she had planned, but when she grabbed his neck and lifted him off the floor she stiffened, her eyes rolled back into her head and she gasped in an eerie fashion. Then she set him back on the floor and she returned to normal, but she now spoke kindly to them, telling them they were now HER children and Loki her heir, her "sword of vengeance".

Amora kissed him twice more and then he attempted to kiss her on the lips. It was a clumsy first kiss, but he'd enjoyed it, and so did Amora. Kissing led to touching, touching to exploring, to removal of their clothes and, Loki smiled and softly chuckled, to a very ungainly attempt at sex. He'd hurt her that first time, making her cry, but she wanted him to try it again which he did but ever so gently, as if she was made of glass, as he feared he would seriously hurt her. He panicked afterwards once he'd seen the blood and then his mother discovered the two of them. Frigga had been angry at first, then she spirited the two of them to her bedroom under a concealment spell. She cleaned them both up separately, then explained that neither he, nor Amora were old enough for an assignation. Frigga then voiced the opinion that perhaps she and his…Loki froze in anger at the thought of Odin as HIS father…should speak to the Vizier and perhaps arrange a marriage between the two of them. Odin did not care about him, or Amora, did not think a marriage between them was worthwhile. So nothing happened. Now however, Amora was his lover, she would be his wife, his Queen and the mother of his soon to be conceived son, his heir to the throne. Now Loki would have his revenge and rub it in Odin's face as well.

Loki sat down on the edge of the bed and leaning over her sleeping form carefully moved a stray golden lock that had wandered to her face to rest against her nose to the side of her face and that's when he thought he saw movement under the covers. There was a bulge under the blanket where he had been sleeping and he stared at it curiously. Did it move again, was it moving, or was it just an illusion of the night shadows? Keeping his eyes on it, it did seem to be moving towards Amora, yes; yes it was slowly creeping under the covers. Slowly, cautiously he raised his left arm and with controlled movements of his fingers caused Gungnir to straighten up and rise away from the wall where he propped it. Slowly it floated through the air to his left hand and then gripping it tightly with his right hand he jumped up from Odin's bed and with speed and might stabbed the bulge with the spear.

Amora awoke with a jolt when she felt the edge of the bed sink and then snap back and she saw Loki stab downwards with his father's spear towards her. She bolted from the bed and prepared to hurl a bolt of mystic energy at him, "Have you gone mad? Why are you trying to kill me?"

She didn't launch that bolt because for some reason he was ignoring her and she heard a muffled squeak as he pulled the spearhead out of the mattress and threw back the covers to reveal a large black shape.

"What, what is that?" she gasped fearfully as she could not see it well in the night shadows.

He turned to answer her, "A black rock spide…Amora do not move, not even a muscle, don't even breathe" he was staring at her feet as he slowly rose to his own. Griping Gungnir tightly in his right hand he hurled it at her feet which caused her to shriek and instinctively jump away. She heard a hiss and then the sound of the spear skewering flesh which then hit the marble wall behind her. Turning around she saw something serpentine writhing about the spear which was embedded in the wall.

"What ARE you doing?" Amora screamed at him in a panic as she tried to cover her nakedness with her arms as she backed away from him.

"Saving your life my dear" he said coldly as he walked to where the spear stuck. "First from a black rock spider and now from…" he gasped, "a shadow viper!"

Her eyes widened with reasonable fear for the bite of a Jotun black rock spider was deadly, but when she heard "shadow viper", whose venom made it the deadliest creature known to exist in any realm, she fainted.

When she awoke she was dressed in a night gown and laying on a couch in Odin's antechamber. When she became aware of a multitude of voices she sat up and saw a company of Einherjar searching the room. Loki had transformed back into Odin and was bellowing angrily to the soldiers to search every nook and cranny thoroughly. When he noticed that she had awakened Loki/Odin went to her and she sprang up from the couch to throw her arms about his neck and wept from shock.

"It is safe now my Lady, the beasts are dead and if anything more is discovered it will be dealt with" Loki/Odin assured her.

"What goes on here father?" Thor's voice came from behind him and Loki/Odin turned to see his brother standing in the doorway of his antechamber directly behind an equally confused Balder. The Thunder god dropped some heavy burden wrapped in canvas – as a matter of fact both of them, rather all of them, as he now saw a company of men behind them carried something in canvas, onto the floor with a thud.

"Someone has tried to assassinate our father and the Lady Amora" spoke up Tyr as his brothers and the handful of men entered the room. "Father killed a black rock spider that was in his bed and a shadow viper." Tyr pointed to where the still reptile lay, still pinioned by Gungnir to the wall. Thor's face blanched as he saw it in a pool of its own venomous blood.

"Are both of you all right?" Balder set his canvas burden down completely forgetting it.

"Yes, yes we are fine, no harm done" Loki/Odin answered back, "but what is it you have brought back with you my son?"

"I prefer to tell you when the room can be emptied father" Balder quickly raised his hand to silence Thor as there were too many people in the room to safely divulge their discovery.

Thor felt like roaring in rage as he watched Amora hang all over his father, didn't the woman have a shred of decency or dignity? She'd been sleeping with his father tonight…for how many nights? When had she moved into his father's bed? His fingers started to curl into fists and he took a step forward and that's when he heard and felt a hand slapping on leather and he was violently whirled around and an angry Balder dragged him out of the room. Throwing him out through the doorway Balder grabbed ahold of the sides of Thor's padded leather chest plate and angrily pushed him up against the opposite wall.

"Did you not hear anything I said earlier?" Balder growled sternly in Thor's face. "You are a Prince of the Realm and a warrior of Asgard; it's about time you acted like one little brother, instead of the spoiled brat we all tolerated."

"Someone has just tried to MURDER our father, AND our future Queen, and all your concerned about is YOUR hurt pride because father has found someone else who makes him happy." Balder released Thor and snapped sharply at him before turning to go back into Odin's antechamber, "Grow up!"

Embarrassed and angry Thor stayed out in the hallway breathing hard and then he took a deep breath and walked back into his father's room. Balder had removed his cloak and laid it over Amora's shoulders as she was now sitting on the small couch, next to his father, clutching it closely around herself.

"Perhaps we should retire to your quarters for the rest of the night my dear" Loki/Odin suggested as he gently cupped her face with his right hand.

"No, someone may have released more poisonous beasts into my rooms or perhaps my father's rooms" Amora shuddered, pulling Balder's cloak tighter about herself.

"We have thoroughly searched the rooms Allfather, and found nothing" Tyr reported to Loki/Odin.

"Good, now take your men and thoroughly search the Vizier's and the Lady Amora's rooms and have more guards outside my doors until this treacherous would-be murderer can be found" Loki/Odin commanded as he turned his attention back to Amora slipping his right arm around her waist to comfort her.

Bowing his head, making a fist Tyr crossed his arm over his heart in salute and directed his men to follow him to the Vizier's chambers. Tyr shot a questioning look at the burdens Balder's men carried as he approached.

"I will explain all later if you return alone, for the less who know the safer father and the Lady Amora will be" Balder said softly. Tyr nodded his head in understanding and left.

"What is this you bring my son?" Loki/Odin asked when Balder ordered his men to place their burdens down on the floor in front of him.

"The possible reason for the attempt on your lives father" Balder replied as he knelt down and unwrapped the bundle revealing the solid rock of gold as his men set their bundles down and uncovered them too.

Loki/Odin's eye grew wide and wider with each rock uncovered, as did Amora's eyes as well, "There were more like this at the bottom of the lake father only this one was small enough to bring back."

"You may have been right my dear Amora and this attack on us is proof of it" Loki/Odin continued to stare at the massive pieces of gold impregnated rocks before him, "as someone thinks we're getting a little too close to the bone for their comfort."

Loki/Odin questioned the young Einherjar that found the boulder and when the young man described other, larger boulders on the lake's bottom Loki knew he was going to have to see these marvels for himself. He asked for the charm back and the young man took it off and handed it back to his Liege.

Loki/Odin was still questioning the young man when Tyr entered his chambers again; the commander of Odin's Einherjar was out of breath from running.

"Why have you returned so soon, were there more poisonous vermin in Milady Amora's chambers?" Loki/Odin demanded an answer from his oldest son.

"No Allfather" Tyr gasped, "it is the Vizier's manservant he was attacked and now lies in the Healing Room."

"Old Ake, attacked" Amora gasped in shock, "how?"

"It appears he may have surprised a thief, and we, a would-be murderer, as he was knifed in your father's bedroom Milady. We found several scrolls strewn about the floor and my men are now giving chase after his attacker."

"I need to go see him" Amora said to Loki/Odin, "perhaps, if he is able, he can shed some light on all this madness."

Loki/Odin shook his head in the affirmative, "Of course my dear." Then turning to Thor he ordered his youngest son to accompany her to the Healing Room

Thor started to object, but a look from Balder made him stay silent and he bowed his head, made a fist and crossed his heart with his arm in obedience to his father and King. Rising to her feet a green and gold light ran over Amora's body changing her night gown for the black dress of mourning she'd wore earlier. She handed Balder his cloak back with her thanks for its use and walked out of Odin's antechamber with a silent Thor following.

The walk to the Healing Room was a silent one and at the moment Amora didn't care that the youngest Odinson wasn't happy about her being intimate with what he thought was his father. Someone had murdered her father, made an attempt on her life, and now had tried to kill her father's man thrall. Whoever it was that had perpetrated these attacks would soon learn the deadly folly of attacking her loved ones.

His heart was pounding like a hammer against his chest as he came to a wheezing stop to catch his breath. The black cloaked figure hid in the shadows of the city as he fled from the Einherjar that were in hot pursuit and not far behind him. His master would be angry as he'd not been able to steal any of the Vizier's personal scrolls, first because of that fool thrall stumbling upon him in the dark and then Tyr Odinson walking in just as he'd dispatched the slave. His one and only possible hope was that neither saw his face or all would be undone and all the work that he'd done to earn his freedom from the collar he wore about his neck would be for nothing. He spotted a small group of Einherjar and realized that they were splitting up into smaller groups to try and surround him. Panic clawed at his heart and he desperately looked around for a way to get passed them but the warriors seemed to be all around him and closing in. He never would have seen the grating in the street if he hadn't slipped on the wet cobblestones and fallen on it. Fear gave him strength as he wretched it up and climbed down the work ladder pulling the grating over the hole. Setting it back into place he climbed down the ladder and ran as he'd never had before.

Loki/Odin had the young Einherjar show him exactly on the holographic, three dimensional map where the giant gold impregnated boulders were in the lake and the young man pointed to a spot seemingly under the stone dragon's head. It gave him the impression that the boulders had been regurgitated and vomited into the lake. Perhaps they had, after a fashion, and Loki knew he was going to the western boarders as soon as Amora returned and he could get rid of everyone in his antechamber.

"Ake you silly, brave old fool" Amora softly, affectionately spoke to the unconscious thrall as she stroked his aged, bald head as he lay in his recovery bed. A Healer came into the room to check on the vitals of her patient and Amora angrily turned to snap at the woman, "Why does he not have guards protecting him? He may have seen the face of his attacker whom may have also been my father's murderer."

"Yes Milady…right away…" The Healer backed out of the room and in a few moments came back with two armed Einherjar who took up positions on either side of the thrall's bed.

"Good" Amora said with some satisfaction. "Make sure that the guards are men above reproach and changed every six hours until his attacker is caught."

"Yes Milady as you command" the Healer bowed as Amora left the room with Thor following her.

Stopping to catch his breath and to listen for any sound of pursuit the hooded assailant pressed his body up against the sewer wall. Ahead of him was another grating with iron bars fastened to the wall that led to it and he cautiously walked up to it to look up through it. Perhaps he could get some idea of where he was in the city and if there were any Einherjar searching yet for him. As quietly as he could he climbed up the ladder and peered out through the grating. As far as he could tell he was in some back alley, dark and deserted. The grating didn't want to budge, forcing him to pound on it around its edges till he could feel it start to give. With a metallic shriek it gave way and he cautiously stuck his head out of the sewer. He breathed a deep sigh and then crawled out through the hole. Keeping to the shadows he kept on the move with every little sound or person he ran across gripping his heart with terror. Terror that it might be one of the pursuing Einherjar or that someone would give him away by loudly denouncing his presence. He moved ever closer to the edge of the city proper until he came to the wall just before the great aqueduct that ran parallel to the fjord that cut through and surrounded Asgard. Scrambling along the wall he found the hidden panel and by pushing it opened a long forgotten escape tunnel to the countryside. A tunnel forgotten by all, even the Allfather, but not by his master who'd promised him his freedom from the collar as long as he did want the master wanted. His master would not be happy that he'd not been able to steal any of the Vizier's most recent scrolls from his bedroom. He especially would not be happy that first the old thrall had surprised him and then Tyr Odinson. The skulker in the shadows again hoped that neither had seen his face or he surely would be a dead man.

Amora did not go back to Loki/Odin's chambers; instead she went to her father's rooms where the guards saluted both of them as Thor and his father's future Queen entered the Vizier's antechamber. Tyr was overseeing the investigation of the near death of her father's loyal thrall as Einherjar with instruments designed to locate traces of foot prints on the floor and finger prints on the scrolls, shelving, and her father's bedroom balcony.

"Did this would-be thief and murderer enter by the balcony?" Amora asked of Tyr.

"It would seem so Milady" Tyr removed his helmet, tucked it under his right arm and bowed his head "as we have found four sets of foot prints going to and fro from the balcony; one female, so we assume that set is yours, one barefoot which would be your father's thrall and if we could have one of your father's shoes we would be able to identify your father's footprints."

"Yes" she thought for a moment and then pointed to a large mahogany dresser set close to the Vizier's bed, "they should be kept there."

With a nod of his head, Tyr sent an Einherjar to the dresser to fetch a shoe which was scanned and then the Vizier's foot prints were identified. Now they would be able to follow the foot prints of the thief no matter where he went.

"You didn't, by chance, see anything of the thief's face did you?"

"No Milady, I'm sorry but I did not" Tyr stated with remorse, "but we will find him."

"I will hold you to that oath Odinson as this thief may also have been my father's murderer" Amora looked at Tyr coldly as she then turned to leave with the still silent Thor following. She walked for some distance before stopping to face Thor, "You may think that either your father has gone senile or that I have him under some love spell. I assure you that neither is true. It was your father who surprised me with this marriage proposal after seeking my father's permission to do so. It was your father who invited me to his bed, as he greatly desires a male heir since you renounced your claim to the throne. While your father can be an intimidating presence, I have had nothing but the highest respect for my foster father. And may I remind you that I am well versed in Asgardian law because as a child, I sat at my father's feet as he stood by your father's throne."

"I care not what YOU think of me Odinson" Amora snapped at him as she turned to walk away, "I have given my consent to your father's marriage proposal and I will be married to him. I suggest you get used to it."

Thor's fingers curled into fists as he stood there in the palace hallway watching her walk back to his father's room. He was fuming as his clenched hands shook, "…get used to it" by Hela's hordes, no he would not. After a moment he followed her back to his father's rooms.

The tunnel was long and dark and he had nothing to use to light his way so he had to keep one hand against one of the walls so as not to lose his way. He counted himself fortunate that he knew the way well in order to get to the hiding chamber where the master was waiting for him. When Asgard was new born, the first King, Buri, had this tunnel built so that upon attack, women and children could escape the city proper and exit into the countryside miles away to safety. When the time came the master would use this same tunnel to lead his legions of mercenaries into the city and take the palace by surprise and when Odin was dead, his master on the throne, he would be freed from this hated collar and his own master for once.

He felt the wall bending into a curve and then he saw the dim light of a torch and he knew he was almost to the hiding chamber. The light became somewhat brighter as he went on and then, after going down a short flight of stairs, he entered into the hiding chamber. The chamber was enormous as it could hold the entire female population of Asgard with no difficulty while they filed out to the exit door. It once had been stocked with barrels of grain so that the women would have food once they reached safety, but mice, rats and insects had long ago devoured it and water had rotted the barrels to heaps of mold.

He saw his master, who as usual wore a black cloaked robe with the hood pulled all the way down to hide his face, but this time there was a giant of a man standing with him, talking to him and he also wore a black cloak with his face hidden by the hood.

"Where are the scrolls you buffoon?" his master angrily growled at him.

"I'm sorry master" he froze at the entrance door momentarily and then quickly walked to where his master stood, "I was surprised by the High Councilor's man thrall and when I killed him, Tyr Odinson walked in on me and I had to flee…"

"Did he see your face you imbecile?" his master snarled as the giant grabbed the thrall by the throat.

"N-n-no master" he gurgled, "at least I don't think he did."

It was becoming hard to breathe and he clawed at the monstrous hand at his throat as it squeezed tighter and tighter.

"You don't think he did" his master spat back at him with disgust. "Your usefulness has ended, as no doubt they have traced your foot prints and are looking for them where they lost you."

With his face turning very red and it was more and more difficult to breathe he tried to beg for a second chance but nothing came out but gurgling noises. His eyes bulged and frantically he clawed and scratched at the giant's hand but to no avail. In desperation he made a grab for the giant's face but only managed to pull the hood a ways from his face. The last thing the servant of the head Librarian saw before the giant man strangled the life from him was glowering eyes, white shining teeth curved in a cruel smile and a jagged facial scar.

It had taken some doing but Loki/Odin convinced Amora to get back into bed, but only after telling her that both rooms were thoroughly checked for any more venomous creatures and none were found, as well as telling her that he had ordered a new mattress.

Amora told Loki, as he shifted out of the Odin form, of her short spat with Thor and Loki laughed while telling her he would have loved to have seen the look on his brother's face when she did. He was silent after that, just sitting up in the bed with his elbows resting on his knees, his arms and hands loosely draped in between his legs staring straight ahead, at nothing really.

"Are you going to tell me what's on your wicked little mind or are you going to miss a chance to "father your heir-apparent"?" she sat up, pushing the blankets away from her as she made her sleeping gown disappear.

"MY wicked little mind" he glanced back at her with an incredulous look on his face as he looked at her nude breasts then laughed softly. "I was thinking whether or not we could travel to the western border lands tonight and still make it back here before dawn. Our would-be assassin has taken up most of the night and I've already ordered Balder and Thor to go back there in the morning to spy out the remaining two valleys…"

His voice trailed off as Amora cupped her breasts in her hands and lifted them slightly, again he chuckled softly, "And you're not making it any easier to think."

"Then don't" she grinned at him. "We can go tomorrow night, or, you can send Odin's ravens."

"You are a clever girl my dear Amora for that is exactly what I shall do" Loki climbed out of bed and shape shifted back into Odin's form, clothing himself with Odin's night shirt and leaving the bedroom he walked over to the open balcony of his antechamber and called for his two ravens. Within a few short minutes the black feathered spies of Odin appeared and both landed on his left arm, "Fly to the western border valleys and find for me where the dragon's horde is hidden then return as quickly as you can to me."

Raising his left arm Huginn and Muninn then flew away and headed west as he stood for a few moments watching them until they disappeared from his sight. Turning away from the balcony he headed back to Odin's bed, shifted back to his own form and climbed into bed, "Now what was that you said about "missing a chance to father my heir-apparent"?"

He lunged for her and she shrieked with laughter until his lips found hers and he crushed her body close to his own.

The ravens made it to the nearest western valley and flew over the lake several times before heading for the lowest point on the timber line on the mountain to land in a tree to rest from their long flight. They scanned the valley for any sign of movement with their keen beady eyes and saw only a few rabbits timidly grazing near the burned ruins of a farm house and a stag grazing near a grove of trees to the south of the lake. They could hear the roar of a waterfall and when they felt rested they headed for the sound. From their aerial vantage point they saw not one but three waterfalls; one fed the fjord in the farthest valley, two however fed the middle valleys streams and rivers, as the third waterfall joined the second before splitting off to feed the lake as the water raced down the claw-like ridges of 'the dragon's back'. Huginn spotted what looked like a trail that led to a point midway up the third waterfall and made for it with its twin following. The first bird landed only a meter or so from the falls and the spraying mist beaded up on its feathers as it walked up as close as it could get to the rushing water. The second bird landed behind the first and cawed at it, but it kept staring at the waterfall tilting its head from side to side.

From the east they now heard the sound of a long boat's engine and the first raven cawed and flapping its wings took off in the direction of the long boat, which now could be seen by them both, with the second in close pursuit. Swiftly they flew to meet the Asgardian long boat and when they reached it the raven's circled around it cawing. Balder whistled and held out both his hands and a raven landed on each one. The raven's cawed and flapped their wings excitedly, "Where Huginn, show us, show us now" Balder commanded the birds and they launched themselves into the air and made for the third waterfall.

"Follow them" Balder shouted to the ship's captain at the long boat's helm and he steered the ship after the ravens.

"What is it? What have father's ravens found?" Thor questioned Balder as he followed him to the ship's fore.

"They may have just discovered the location of the dragon's horde!"

The long ship slowed to a halt as it reached the waterfall and Balder and Thor saw both ravens land on the mountain trail. The trail was too narrow for the ship to land so it hovered next to it as both Odinsons leapt over the ship's side to land upon it and they both studied the waterfall as one raven cawed at Balder who seemed to understand it. Taking a deep breath and hugging the mountain side Balder entered the waterfall. Thor heard a gurgled cry from Balder and without thinking dashed in after his brother. The water that hammered him was unmercifully cold and when he lunged through it he found himself half frozen, thoroughly drenched, completely out of breath as he nearly fell on top of his older half-brother to find himself and Balder on a ledge with yet another waterfall to their left but neither could see where it flowed to.

"Are…are you alright?" Thor gasped as he tried to get his breath back after the frigid water violently drove it from his lungs and he held his right arm up to shield himself from the water that sprayed back from the falls to his right.

Balder had managed to rise up to a half sitting position gasping loud and deeply to restore his breathing to normal as he shivered with chattering teeth. He undid the clasp of the brooches that held his ermine cloak to the upper part of his leather bound chest plate as it was thoroughly drenched and weighed a ton. He slid it off and sat upright, "Ye…yes, I think I am."

Thor got a better view of the ledge that they sat on. The wet slippery rock appeared to be four meters wide and at least an eighth of a mile long. Gingerly the two Odinsons rose to their feet and gazed about the ledge and the waterfalls, "This fall seems to be thinner than the outer one, let's see if there is anything behind it" Balder carefully reached through it with his arm which disappeared up to his elbow.

"There is empty space behind this waterfall" he declared as he withdrew his arm from the cold water.

Carefully Balder walked to the entrance of this small rocky space and taking a deep breath walked through the second waterfall.

"Thor, come and see this."

The Thunder god did as Balder requested and found himself next to his older half-brother on another ledge that ran alongside a wall going away from the fall. The inside waterfall fell into what seemed to be a large cave but because the diffused light from outside didn't go far neither Odinson could see just how big the cave was.

"Go back to the ship and ask the captain if he has a sun orb on board and if he does bring it back along with a tether" Balder ordered Thor as he squinted into the blackness.

Taking a few deep breaths Thor walked back out through the waterfall and returned only minutes later with a crystal sphere and a handheld disc which he then handed to Balder. Balder threw the sphere out into the blackness and then pressed a button on the disk to activate the orb. Light exploded from the orb as it floated in what was revealed to be a massive cave that neither Asgardian could see any end to.

"By father's beard" Thor exclaimed as the light reflected back from something shiny in the stalactites that grew down from the caves ceiling and from the stalagmites rising up from the cavern floor and when he looked at the wall behind him he gasped.

When Balder turned to see why he too gasped as the cave wall behind them was nearly solid gold. As they looked around the cavern they discovered that thick veins of gold permeated the walls of the cave as far as they could see.

"Now we know why no one ever found the dragon's horde" Balder exclaimed in utter amazement, "the beast devoured it and when Great grandfather Buri turned it to stone its treasure was incased in it."

The two of them carefully walked along the inner ledge and they came to what looked like a carved staircase and they realized they were not the first to find this cave. Down they followed it till they reached a lower level and Balder walked up to a stalagmite and saw that the reflective lights they had seen on the ledge were diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, and other shiny precious stones.

"Thor, use your hammer and give this stalagmite a tap just…here" Balder pointed to a spot next to a large emerald which Thor, after pulling Mjolnir from the loop on his belt, gave the stalagmite a smack with his war hammer and an emerald nearly bigger than Balder's hand popped out and his brother caught it and studied it for a brief moment. "I think the Lady Amora would appreciate this as an early wedding present don't you?" and before Thor could answer Balder pointed to another spot, "A tap right here if you please."

Thor was a might annoyed that Balder was treating his war hammer like a jeweler's stone cutter but he did as his brother requested and a diamond about the same size as the emerald popped out of the wet stone.

"This is for my Nanna" Balder grinned. "Now knock this thing from its base and let's take it back to father."

With a grunt Thor swung his hammer into the stalagmite and severed it completely from its base. Balder stuffed the large gems into his shirt and then helped Thor carry the jewel encrusted rock back to the ship. As they neared the stairway Balder stopped and stared at the wall just before the first stair.

"What is it?" Thor questioned him wondering why his half-brother would stop and what was so interesting in that section of the cavern wall. Balder did not answer right away but he set down the pointed end of the stalagmite and ran his hands over a section of the wall that bulged out about 12 centimeters and looked to be about six or seven meters in width. Balder then unhooked the control device to the sun orb from his belt and made it rise up towards the cavern ceiling. It seemed to go up forever but when it neared the roof Balder stopped it and gaped. He looked back at the odd rock formation and then looked back at Thor, "Od's blood, the old story was true. Here's a tale to tell your grandchildren little brother because if that up there is a spinal column, then this is a rib, and we are standing in the gullet of a monstrous dragon."

With his eyes wide with amazement Thor nodded his head in agreement as the odd wall formation ran completely up the side of the cave to the roof where it joined what indeed did look like a spinal column, "I guess we both will brother."

When they emerged from the waterfall and dumped the stalagmite onto the ship's deck the Einherjar on board looked at it with dropped jaws and wide eyes and Balder explained that there were more like it inside a fantastic cavern.

Thor climbed back on board the ship as Balder went back for his ermine cloak, and he complained that it weighed more, now that it was thoroughly soaking wet, than the stalagmite did. Tossing his cloak into the ship Balder took the control device from his belt and had the sun orb float through the waterfall and turned it off as it fell into his hands.

"The day is young captain let us see what secrets the streams and rivers of the middle valley hold before going onto the last valley" Balder ordered as an Einherjar gave him and Thor a blanket to cover themselves with and to keep warn as they flew to the next valley. Odin's ravens flew to the ship and landed on the deck in front of Balder and Thor cawing as they did so when they saw the stalagmite and the shiny jewels embedded in it. Both birds began to peck at the rock hoping to dislodge the gems for themselves and Balder laughed at the birds for their persistence.

"Both of you be on your way and tell father we've found the dragon's missing horde and will bring home enough evidence of it when we return later tonight. Now be gone and fly swiftly!"

Cawing one more time they flapped their wings and took off towards Asgard proper with the Odinsons watching them till they disappeared in the distance.

"Your awfully quiet little brother what is on your mind?"

"Have you ever heard any story about the monster that I fought earlier this week, this Mangog?" Thor finally spoke up as he turned to face his brother.

"No, I haven't, why?" Balder shot him a puzzled look.

"I have searched the Chronicles of the Kings, especially father's early years on the throne, but I can find no trace of the fiend, yet when I fought it, it knew on sight that we were Asgardians and it said that father had imprisoned it four millennia ago."

"Have you asked father about it?"

"No, not yet at least" Thor sighed with some frustration, "but he seemed not to have heard of it. I cannot believe that father would be losing his memory due to age as the Vizier was much older than father and his mind was still sharp and lucid."

"You do seem to have a puzzle as great as these mysterious raids little brother and I hope you find the key piece that puts yours together as we have just now found" Balder replied thoughtfully as the ship flew into the middle valley. Balder stood up and from a pouch on his belt pulled out the shape shifting charm and walking over to the young Einherjar that found the gold pillar in the lake and giving it to the young man, told the youth to be ready to explore the river bottom that they hovered over.


	7. Chapter 7

7

Loki/Odin was sitting on the Golden Throne listening to a few cases dealing with Asgardian law from those who had appealed to him as a last resort for justice or those who simply wish to ingratiate themselves to him, to gain status and curry his favor, in their hoped advancement in his court. With Amora at his side, in the place her father always stood, he learned just HOW well she actually was versed in Asgardian law.

The last case before him was of a somewhat wealthy land owner named Eskill who had the poor misfortune of making a wager with Lord Erlick on a horse race, which he lost, and now did not have the money therewith to pay the wager. Eskill was pleading for more time to pay off the debt while Lord Erlick was insisting that Eskill and his family be given to him as thralls and his lands as well. Now Loki/Odin knew why Amora despised him so much, the man gave off an aura of slime and Loki/Odin felt rather dirty in his presence. The only question he had was why she'd married him in the first place as she usually had good judgement about others character. There was no doubt in Loki/Odin's mind as to why Lord Erlick wanted the family as thralls as the man Eskill had a very young daughter, along with two much older sons, and the daughter was a beautiful child. Loki/Odin was about to make a decision when his two ravens flew into the Golden Throne room to circle the throne and Loki/Odin. Cawing excitedly the ravens landed one on each of Loki/Odin's hands.

"Well done my pets" Loki/Odin smiled, "go to your nests until I have need of you."

With that the ravens flew away to their respective nests and Loki/Odin was silent and began to chew on his mustache, "My Liege what will be your decision on this matter of the debt owed to me?" Lord Erlick stepped forward to gain Loki/Odin's attention. The sour look on Loki/Odin's face let him know he'd stepped out of line, "Whatever I decide to do Lord Erlick will be done at a more opportune time as now there are more pressing matters that need my attention."

Loki/Odin rose from the Golden Throne and slamming Gungnir's pointed base into the floor, "I will call you both to stand before me at MY good will, now both of you be gone!"

Both men bowed and left the Golden Throne room as Loki/Odin reached for Amora's hand which she took in her own as they exited the throne room, "What did the ravens' say to you that you would spoil that bastard Erlick's plan for those children?"

"They said that Thor and Balder have found the dragon's horde behind the third water fall in a gigantic cave and it seems the real reason no one ever discovered the horde until now is that the dragon devoured his treasure. The mountain may have actually been a dragon after all."

Loki/Odin was silent until he entered his, or Odin's chambers, and went to the long table where the maps of the western borders still laid.

"When Thor and Balder return from their mission you and I shall see this wonder for ourselves."

The young Einherjar dived into the river before transforming back into an otter and he gasped at the frigid iciness of the water and he quickly transformed. The oily fur and body fat of the otter warmed him up enough to dive below the water's surface as he swam down river. He did not see any large pillar like rocks of gold at the river's bottom but coming to a sand bar he noticed something strange about it. Upon investigation he discovered that the sand and small grit weren't sand or grit but gold, small grains of gold eroded from the mountain.

Quickly he surfaced, transformed back into his man shape and requested a bucket. With this both Thor and Balder's interests were piqued and though they thought this request strange, Balder had an Einherjar throw a wooden bucket to the lad. Who shape shifted back to being an otter and disappeared under water. Moments later the youth returned, and handing the bucket to Thor, climbed out of the river. All on board ship gasped when they saw what filled the bucket, "By father's beard!" Balder exclaimed as he thrust in his hand to bring out a handful of golden mud, "There is no further need to explore here let us return to Asgard and show this wonder to father."

Dropping the golden grit back into the bucket Balder stared at the golden muck that still stuck to his hand as the long ship headed back to the city proper. The wealth of this mountain was unimaginable and if the people who had lived here knew of this wealth they would have fought to the last man to defend it instead of running away. Or, they would have killed each other off in their greed to possess such great quantities of gold and precious gems, despite the great wealth that already exists in Asgard.

Tyr led a company of Einherjar through the streets as they had found the would-be murderous thief's foot prints down a dark side street that ended at a sewer grill. Tyr sent a man back to the palace to fetch a map of the sewers in order to learn where all the service entrances were. He silently cursed his misfortune as now there was no real way to know just where this thief had gone. After a moment's thought he sent most of the company of men down into the sewer, while keeping three men with him as he waited for the map.

When they descended into the sewer the Einherjar split in half going in opposite directions and every time they came to a junction half would follow the branch off while the rest kept going down the main line. Finally there was only one man traveling down the main pipe when he came upon a body, face down in the muck. The dead man was cloaked in a black travelers cloak and wore the collar of a thrall. The Einherjar saw a nearby service ladder and climbed up it. He'd come out on a busy market street and spotted another group of Einherjar. Calling to them to inform them of what he'd found he told them to find Tyr and bring him to this site and to help him bring up the thrall's body.

The map of the sewers and an Einherjar runner coming from the market place got to Tyr at the same time and after showing Tyr where on the map the body was found, he and his men left to follow the runner. When they arrived at the market street sewer grating Tyr ordered his men to form a human ladder on the bars of the service ladder to haul up the body. When they got the thrall's body laid out on the street one of the Einherjar recognized him.

"Commander this thrall worked in the King's library" the Captain spoke up, "I'm sure of it!"

Turning to an underling Tyr ordered him to run to the library and bring back the Head Librarian to make a positive identification of the body. Nodding his head the Einherjar turned and ran off to fetch the Librarian. Now all that was left to do was scan the shoe prints on the corpse to see if this thrall was indeed the attacker of the High Vizier's man thrall and recall the men in the sewers.

Even though Heimdall would have seen them when they arrived, Balder wanted to be sure that no one else did. So he ordered the long ship's Captain to land and hide in a thick grove of oak trees located at the back gates of the Palace and to remain outside this least traveled part of the city proper until night fall. When the sun set, Balder sent two Einherjar ahead to make sure there was no one present to see them disembark. When the men gave a signal that the way was deserted he and Thor picked up the stalagmite, wrapped in canvas, and hurriedly got off the ship. Guards called out to them and Balder identified himself telling the guards to remain silent as they were going to see the King. Explaining the fewer people that saw them, the less likely whoever was behind the attempted assassination of their father and Amora would know about their arrival through gossip or spies. The young soldier that shape-shifted brought the bucket of wet gold, also covered by canvas, followed right behind them as they kept to the shadows.

They managed to get to Odin's quarters without being seen, which suited Balder just fine until they came to the four guards outside the Allfather's antechamber doors. One Einherjar knocked on the door and announced Thor and Balder's arrival to which Loki/Odin bade them enter.

"What have you discovered this time my sons?" Loki/Odin inquired as Thor and Balder hastily entered with the bucket wielding youth behind them as the guards closed the doors behind them.

"Enough gold and precious jewels to make even the poorest thrall a wealthy man" Thor said as he set down his end of the stalagmite and Balder uncovered it as the youthful Einherjar set his bucket down in front of Loki/Odin and the Lady Amora and uncovered it.

"The legend of Great grandfather Buri and the dragon may not be a tale for children after all father" Thor continued, "the inside of the mountain is thick with enormous veins of gold and stalagmites as well as stalactites are embedded with all manner of precious gems and metals just like this one."

"So the dragon devoured its horde" Loki/Odin stared intently at each item before him as he thought upon the ramifications of what his brothers had put before him. Which this much wealth a man could very well purchase the swords of thousands upon thousands of mercenaries and a kingdom as well. Over his dead body Loki said to himself which is exactly what would happen unless they…"Have you told anyone else about what you have discovered my sons?"

"No father and we were careful to avoid being seen as we arrived and made our way here" Balder spoke up as he reached into his shirt to pull out the uncut emerald to hand to Amora. "An early wedding present from Nanna and me for you little sister as I know how much you like them."

Amora gasped as she saw the size of the emerald and hesitatingly took it from her foster brother and examined it more closely, then smiled at Balder, "Long as it been since I've been called that Lord Balder and you have my thanks for this gift."

"You are most welcome M'Lady."

"Where was this bucket full of gold taken from?" Loki/Odin asked of Balder as Amora studied her new gem and he briefly wondered what she would make from it and he had a good idea what he was going to do with this bucket of gold before him.

"We took it from the main river of the second valley father" Balder replied, "it did not seem necessary to explore any further as the gold in the mountain is finding its way into the valleys by erosion from the waterfalls."

"The bottom of the river was completely covered in gold grit my liege" the young Einherjar spoke up, "that came from a sand bar near the western bank of the biggest river."

Loki/Odin was silent from some time before he spoke, "It is obvious that whoever is behind these attacks on our people knows about the gold and the great cavern. It is also obvious that he isn't up to full force yet or he would be pounding on my doors himself."

Staring hard at the objects before him Loki thought upon these ramifications before speaking again.

"We must force his hand" Amora spoke up, "force him to make mistakes…fatal mistakes" she ended her words with a growl.

"Yes, we must" Loki/Odin returned her thought but added, "but we mustn't give him all that we know. Let it be known that we have found gold in the valleys but say nothing of the cavern you discovered."

"I believe it is time I sent those three legions of Einherjar to the valleys to patrol them, and send the people back to their homes so that they may use the gold on their properties to rebuild their lives. That should worry our traitor to no end as to how close we may be to finding out his identity."

"Yes father" both Balder and Thor saluted their father and made to leave.

"Not yet my sons" Loki/Odin stopped them. "I was informed that all the bodies of the Einherjar that died on N'as-Keroth have been brought back home and there will be a feast to commemorate their deeds of valor at the end of this week as well as your own my son" Loki/Odin placed a hand on Thor's left shoulder and briefly smiled, "I also intend to marry the Lady Amora then as well so it will be a day to be remembered."

At that moment Tyr was announced at the door and the oldest Odinson walked in with soldiers carrying a wrapped body on a litter with the Head Librarian following. Balder quickly recovered the bejeweled stalagmite and the bucket of gold grit hoping no one saw what they were.

"What's this?" Loki/Odin questioned, especially when he got a whiff of the sewers from the corpse, "Why have you brought this here to me?"

"We've found the thief and attacker of the Vizier's man thrall father. He was a thrall of the Head Librarian" Tyr continued, "and we believe he may even have been the Vizier's murderer as well as the High Councilor's blood was found on the dagger he carried."

"Then I am denied vengeance" Amora said coldly as she eyed the body then turning upon the Head Librarian she said icily. "How is it that a thrall, owned by you, could be part in thievery and murder and possible treason?"

"I…I do not know my Lady" the Librarian; a tall thin man with thick black hair, was sweating profusely, "he was always a lazy thorn in my side…I cannot believe he would have such ambitions, other than shirking his work duties."

"He was only the hand that held the knife my dear" Loki/Odin spoke up while still deep in thought after he dismissed the Head Librarian, "it is the head we still must find and properly deal with, and then you may exercise your revenge which is your right as the Vizier's only living relative."

"Let it be known that we have found the one responsible for the Vizier's death and are continuing to search for the reasons behind his attack on the Vizier and his man thrall" Loki/Odin said. "Let us keep silent the fact that he was only the tool of one more treacherous and perhaps, give whoever is behind all this a false sense of security before we catch him in our net and haul him in. Balder my son, inform the people of the western boarders they may return home then fetch back the women and children from the northern mountains."

"Yes father" Tyr saluted his father (as did the other Odinsons with an anxious Balder bolting out the door first) as he left with the body and then the others exited leaving the evidence of their search of the valleys.

"The jewels in this stalagmite are yours my darling Enchantress" Loki shifted back to his form as he poured himself a glass of wine, "and out of curiosity, what do you intend on making from them as I know what I want to make from this golden grit."

"I have needed a few new necklaces and earrings so that will take care of those, but as for this" she held up the raw emerald and muttering quietly as she waved her right hand over it while her left began to glow with a green light. Slowly the emerald started to glow and it seemed to soften into what appeared to be a gel-like substance which Amora began to shape and mold until it formed a face framing tiara with two upward and two downward horn-like spikes on either side of her head which flowed into a half diadem that would disappear into her thick luscious blond hair and would come to a point in between her eyes just above her nose. She placed it on her head and turned to look at him. "What do you think; shall I wear it on our wedding day?"

"Yes, you should as it suits you very well my dear" Loki grinned at her as he watched her creation solidify as a beautifully cut emerald tiara, "as I shall have our wedding rings and new armor for myself forged from this gold and whatever is left you may use as you see fit."

Thor accompanied Balder as he went to speak to the farmers and villagers about returning to their homes and the people were fearful and skeptical and others were angry that the 'Norns' that attacked them hadn't been found and punished for their butchery.

"Please listen to me" Balder pleaded with the crowd, "at dawn three legions of Einherjar will be sent to patrol each valley under the command of Thor, and The Warriors Three, and you will be safe as you rebuild your homes and villages."

"With what?" a man shouted from the crowd.

"Gold was found in the lake, rivers and streams and the fjord may also have gold deposits from the "dragon's back" mountain, you may use that to pay for building materials and the Einherjar will be there to protect you as you gather what you need and rebuild your lives."

At this news the crowd became animated and they excitedly chattered to each other as Balder dismissed them to their temporary shelters and then he turned to Thor, "Find your friends and have Tyr assign troops to you that can be ready to leave at dawn in long boats. I am going to find a ship to go to the northern mountains to bring back the women and children for the feast."

With that Balder turned and left Thor, who slowly left the buzzing crowd to seek out Tyr as he spotted an Einherjar guard walking by. Calling to the man he motioned him to approach him and then ordered him to locate his friends and have all of them come to his room to meet up with him as they were to leave for the western boarders. When the man left to deliver his message Thor went to Tyr's office of the guard to see about getting the ships and the legions his father had ordered.

Balder quickly found an unused air ship and commandeered it to fly to the northern mountains. As it made its way through the sky he stood at the prow of it barely keeping himself from screaming at the captain to go faster as the only thing he wanted to see now was his beloved Nanna and his son. Impatience made the trip feel like a horrid eternity until Balder saw the outline of the northern mountains and he smiled with anticipation.

He felt the ship start its decent as they came closer to King Enar's palace hall which Balder could now make out its outline through the clouds and his heart began to race in his chest. At the sound of the ship's engines people began to come out of their tents to look up at the sky and a few people spotted him and pointed him out to others around them. When the captain landed the ship Balder leapt from it and asked the first person he came to where he could find the Lady Nanna and his brother Hodr. The old man pointed down a row of tents and asked if it was safe to return to Asgard and Balder yelled back that it was as he ran towards the tent the old man showed him.

"Nanna, Forseti" Balder called out as he skid to a halt and turned about searching everywhere for his wife and child, "Nanna!"

From a tent three down from where he stood Nanna, crown Princess of Vanaheim, stepped out to see who it could be that was calling her name and when she saw Balder she cried out in joy and ran to him. She fell upon him, throwing her arms about his neck to kiss him with all her might, as there had been no news from Asgard about the beast, she had spent her days in worry and fretting. He crushed her to his body as he returned her passion.

"What is it Forseti? What is going on?" Hodr questioned the boy as he had his nephew lead him out of the tent.

"Its father "The boy cried out as he let loose of his uncle's hand and ran to his father.

Embracing his son to him Balder kissed the top of Forseti's head, "Thor defeated the beast and it's safe to come back home."

News past quickly through the refugee camp about Thor's victory over Mangog and the Asgardians began packing the few belongings that they had managed to bring with them while the Einherjar that had been sent to protect them began to break down the tents and helping the elderly and infirm to get to the long ships and then board them.

Balder sought an audience with King Enar and thanked the dwarf King for his hospitality and promised that he would be generously rewarded by Odin for his aid and patience to the Asgardians. While the Dwarf King was a bit gruff with Balder initially he softened somewhat when Balder mentioned compensation and allowed the Odinson to leave with his blessings of continued friendship with Asgard.

The people were eager to return home and quickly rounded up what they had and the food bought by them from the dwarves and marched to the long ships to board them. Balder already had his family on the ship he arrived in and he watched the exodus of his people from the stern of the boat. He heard some squawking coming from one of the boats as a large bearded Einherjar carried a female aboard ship. He recognized the voice as belonging to the Lady Sif as she complained that she didn't need to be carried. The warrior just ignored her and set her down in a group of elderly women and Balder grinned at Sif's presumed indignity at the Einherjar's expense. When one ship was full of refugees it rose into the air and set its course for Asgard with Balder's ship rising up behind it to follow it home.

Thor had found Tyr and requested the three legions of Einherjar that his father wanted to be sent to the valleys in the western border lands. To have them at the Palace front gates ready to go at dawn and he requested long ships to carry them. Tyr told him that all would be done and Thor left his oldest brother to go to his own quarters. On the way he met up with the soldier he'd sent to find his friends and the man told him that he'd found all of them and informed them to be at his room. Thor thanked the guard and continued to his quarters. Once there he asked his thrall for food and wine for his friends as well as himself as he went into his bedroom. Taking off his winged helmet Thor tossed it onto his bed and just stood there in the middle of the room. All the men who perished at the hands of Mangog deserved the feast honoring them, but for some reason he felt unworthy of any honors. Only a few years back he would have declared that he and only he deserved honor as it was he and he alone that defeated the beast, but that was before he met Jane Foster. Before he'd been humiliated before the mortal S.H.I.E.L.D. agents by being unable to pick up Mjolnir, and, confused about what he would do during the rest of his exile until his friends came to tell him of Loki's duplicity. Were it not for his greed for glory; Loki would never have learned he was half Jotun, never would have learned that his family wasn't his family. Never would have been made enraged at the inequity of his life for being ignored by all but mother, and, Loki wouldn't be dead now because of his stupidity at thinking he could destroy the Aether when no one could before him.

His thrall interrupted his thoughts as he entered and set the requested food and drink on the small dining table in the antechamber before leaving. He didn't feel hungry but it had been a long day traveling to the western borderlands, getting the Einherjar readied and setting up a schedule of patrols and materials for camps, as well as food for the returning people who would be trying to rebuild their lives. He would need to have some sustenance for all that would be needed to be done. Just then his three friends entered and he began to explain that they needed to prepare for departure at dawn and what they would be doing once they got to the western borderland valleys.

"Let us start on this feast before Volstagg devours it otherwise we won't have a chance to even relish the smell of it" Fandrall quipped as the burly warrior started piling his plate high with food.

Loki transformed back into Odin's form and called for his two ravens that obediently came at their master's calling. Loki/Odin ordered them to rest on the great upsweeping arms at the head of Odin's bed and then handed the wing charm to Amora.

"Wear this and transform into a raven for you and I are going to the western borderlands to see this wealth for ourselves. Hopefully we'll find one of Karnilla's men, disguised as beasts, and discover what they have learned, if anything, about any strangers lurking about."

Amora did as he requested and immediately became a raven. He did likewise, and no one would have been the wiser, not even Heimdall, for the Allfather often sent his ravens out to bring him back news of the realms. Together they flew out the open balcony of Odin's antechamber and headed for the western border lands.

It was just as glorious a feeling as the first time, this feeling of flight and he sported a trifle with Amora as they went climbing and diving through the sky. When they came to the western valleys Loki and Amora flew straight for the third waterfall and landed behind some bushes on the mountainous trail where they then transformed into giant river otters. With squeaks and chirps they acted like playful otters as they dashed into the waterfall. Anyone watching them would have thought they were only animals at play and pay them no attention, but, once behind the two waterfalls they shifted back to their own forms and Loki, conjuring up a sun orb activated it and they began to explore the cavern.

"Even though Balder told the truth" Amora gasped as she saw the nearly solid gold cavern walls and the jewel encrusted stalagmites and stalactites "his words could not do this justice."

"No indeed" Loki answered back as he started down the carved stairway, his attention was upon the inner waterfall. "Shall we see where this waterfall empties out to as there must be another cavern below this one or it would be flooded?"

Once they reached the cavern floor they walked over to the falls and tried to look down the gap in the floor but could see nothing. Loki had the sun orb drop into the hole and could see a drop of about thirty meters before they could see a pool of water.

"Shall we get wet my dear?" As he transformed into a giant river otter and dived in, he heard a second splash as Amora followed after him. Mentally he ordered the sun orb to move in front of him and he started to feel the pull of an increasingly swift current. He was pulled under the water as the current became faster and faster and he lost sight of Amora and it was increasingly harder to avoid hitting the walls and the roof of the underwater cave as he swam with the swift current. He felt like a stone shot from a sling as he hit calmer waters and he surfaced to find himself in the lake. Now he knew how the golden monoliths came to be in the lake as they must have broken off from the cavern ceiling and walls due to erosion from the second waterfall and shot through the underwater cave opening. He looked around to try and find Amora but did not see her; she was right behind him, but, where was she?

He was starting to panic and he chirped several times for her but heard nothing. Then he dived under water to head back for the cave opening with the sun orb lighting the way for him and that's when he saw her. She had returned to her own form and was just floating in the swirling waters near the mouth of the cave. With a slap of his webbed feet against the water he rocketed towards her and when he reached her he could see that she was unconscious. He reverted back to his true form and wrapping his right arm around her waist he pulled her up to the surface.

"Amora, Amora" he cried out when he broke the surface and slapped her face lightly to try and wake her up but to no avail and he discovered that she wasn't breathing. Desperation gave him speed to swim towards the shore and the strength to pull her limp body out of the water. He started to completely panic but he fought the urge down and rolling Amora over onto her belly he began to push down, then up, where her lungs were all the while muttering for her not to be dead. Tears ran down his face as he felt hysteria trying to take control of him again when he was rewarded by her gagging and spitting up a mouthful of water. He continued to try and force the water out of her lungs and she vomited up more water, then coughed and whimpered. Rolling her over unto her back he slipped his right arm under her shoulders and pulled her to his breast to hold her tightly as he kissed her forehead and tasted blood.

From the light of a half-moon he could see a small but deep jagged cut at her hairline that freely bled and the blood was running down her face, "Get these herbs wet Asgardian, place them on the wound and the bleeding will stop."

Loki just about jumped out of his skin and he swore under his breath that a wolf (that could talk), most likely one of Karnilla's men in animal form, could sneak up on him, but, then he'd been wholly focused on Amora's wound and hadn't been aware of his surroundings.

The 'wolf' was indeed a Norn warrior as he shifted back to his true shape and tossed a small burlap bag at Loki who caught it with his left hand. Gently Loki set Amora down on the wet ground and he quickly arose to dash to the lakeshore's edge to dip the entire bag into the clear, cold water until it was thoroughly soaked, then returned to the fallen Amora. Opening the pouch he pulled out a small handful of the wet herbs and placed them upon the jagged cut. The Norn's words were true as the bleeding stopped almost immediately.

"Amora" Loki pleaded with her as he slipped his right arm under her shoulders and lifted her head to rest on his shoulder "please wake up, wake up!"

The Norn produced another small pouch and held it under Amora's nose and even Loki could smell the atrocious scent that came from it as it brought her back to consciousness. She coughed and pushed the pouch away from her face as her nose rebelled against its horrid scent as her eyes blinked and then she groaned from pain. Loki had to stop her from touching her wound, "You've a cut on your head my dear but I don't think it will scar."

"The last thing I remember was following you, then the current turned swift and nothing till now" Amora placed her left hand on Loki's chest and closed her eyes with a soft groan.

"The current was very swift and you must have hit a sharp rock or outcropping but you are all right now" Loki made to stand up and he pulled her to her feet as he did so. "Do you think you can stand?"

"Perhaps, after the world stops spinning around" Amora smiled weakly as she clung to Loki waiting for the dizzy spell to go away.

"Have you seen anyone prowling around these lands that weren't sent by your Queen or an Odinson?" Loki spoke to the Norn warrior as he held on to Amora as she steadied herself.

"No I have not" the Norn replied. "We will continue to spy out the land for you if that is your wish."

"It is, and the inhabitants of these valleys will be returning" Loki informed the Norn, "so stay out of their way but keep watch on them. Gold has been found coming from the mountain and they will be using that to pay for rebuilding. There will be Einherjar patrolling along with Thor and his three idiot friends to keep the peace. I hope to force this traitor's hand and make him reveal himself so that I, and the Lady Amora, can deal with him at our leisure."

Then to Amora Loki spoke, "Now I must get you back to the palace, do you think you can shape shift and fly? You're still wearing the charm, aren't you?"

"Yes I still have the charm, but, I don't think I can use it or fly" she groaned and closing her eyes she laid her head on his shoulder to ward off another dizzy spell.

Loki scowled in consternation, damn, what was he to do now? He could shape shift into an eagle and help her shift into the form of some small rodent and carry her back to Asgard proper, but if Heimdall saw the two ravens leave only to see an eagle and a mouse return, then he might become suspicious and he might suspect that Loki had not died on Svartalfheim after all. Unlike all the other fools that fell for his ruse, Heimdall (who was the only one to figure out that it had been him who showed the frost giants how to get into Asgard and the weapons vault) could not be so easily fooled. Taking her back to Asgard was out of the question, but the wound on her head needed the proper attention of a Healer and Eir would ask too many questions about how Amora acquired it in the first place. He had only one option left to him, he must go to Karnilla again.

Loki closed his eyes and concentrated intensely and in seconds he created an astral image of himself that he made appear before Karnilla's ivory throne and before Karnilla herself. He respectfully asked for her aid in getting to Nornheim and to heal Amora's head wound. In response she rose up from her throne and with mumblings and hand gestures she created a column of smoke that surrounded the astral images of him and Amora and them at the lake simultaneously. The column grew and swirled completely enveloping them and when it cleared Loki and Amora were standing directly in front of Karnilla's throne. Scooping Amora up into his arms he followed Karnilla as she led him to her chambers.

Thor dismissed his man thrall who cleared away the dishes and left over food after his friends left to make their own preparations and the thrall, who'd heard the news that on the end of the week, which was now only three days away, there would be a feast to honor the Vizier, the Einherjar that died on N'as-Keroth and to honor him for defeating the monster Mangog. The thrall even excitedly hinted that perhaps the Allfather was going to proclaim him King again and retire from the throne which would be the highest honor that could possibly be given to him. Thor walked to the balcony of his antechamber and stared out over all of Asgard which at one time he had greatly lusted after. How many times when he was younger had he bragged "When I'm King…" to anyone and everyone who was anywhere near him. He had abdicated his right to the throne after the defeat of the dark elves and at the time he'd known that that had been the right thing to do as he knew the truth, that he wasn't capable of being King. His mind was now unsure that had been the right thing after all if his father was going to marry the oft-married Lady Amora. Amora who at the worst was just like Loki, scheming, manipulative and a talented liar, but she had been deeply attached to her father, and to his man servant, and his death and the near death of the thrall had affected her greatly. As their mother's death had affected Loki, Loki who had saved his life from the Kursed when he could have just let the monster beat him to death. Could the death of her father have changed her as well?

Earlier Thor had gone to The Golden Throne room to spy on Amora as she stood by his father's side and she did know Asgardian law, she knew it very well and she was impartial in giving his father the letter of the law. Yet something was not right, and it was madding that he couldn't figure out just exactly what it was. There were so many questions assaulting his mind about the monster Mangog, about what Balder had said about his mother's father, and now these raiders in the western borderlands and the traitor behind them. As well as the dreams he was having about Loki. Dreams were Loki was still alive, but he knew that could not be for his brother had died in his arms. Only Jane's weakened condition and the on-coming storm had kept him from bringing Loki's body with him when he sought shelter for Jane in that cave. While Loki had died with honor, his body had been left to rot on Svartalfheim, denied a proper funeral by father, but, then his father hadn't allowed Loki to be at their mother's funeral. Loki didn't even know about her death until after the funeral. This thought resonated in him as he turned away from the view of the city, how could his father have been so cruel?

"Would my Prince require anything else?" the man thrall asked of his Lord.

"No, not at this moment I…I will be in the Library for a while" Thor walked out of his quarters as his man thrall bowed, perhaps what he was looking for could be found in the Chronicles he just needed to search more thoroughly.

When he reached the library Thor was greeted by a thrall who asked what service he could be to his Prince and Thor replied that he wish to read from The Chronicles of the Kings, in particular of the early days of his father's reign after the Vanaheim wars. The thrall bowed and went to fulfill his Prince's wishes. He soon returned along with two other thralls with three immense books which they placed on a square mahogany table and one left to find the Odinson a chair which he quickly brought to the table for his Lord.

Thor thanked them and sitting down began to slowly read through the first book and was surprised to learn that his father's first wife, the Lady Bertha, had not left his father after the hostage exchange. He had always thought that was the main reason she divorced Odin and left to live on Vanaheim with her son Freyr. As he read on he learned of series of bloody scrimmages between Asgard and Jotunheim that nearly bordered on all-out war. In the last great battle, five legions of Valkyries and five legions of White Elves from Alfheim under the command of Freya, the daughter of Odin, aided the armies of Asgard. At this Thor stared at the page with shock, for neither of his parents had ever told him that he'd had a sister or that she had once commanded the Valkyries. Why was he never told of his sister's existence? Reading on he discovered that Laufey, the Jotun King saw Freya's face and greatly desired her, so much so that the Jotun stopped the battle and sent ambassadors to Odin asking for Freya to be his wife. Laufey stated that he would cease all hostilities and make peace with Asgard in exchange for Freya. The former Queen and Freya both passionately rejected Laufey's offer but his father's decision to have the marriage take place in order to end the battles alienated both wife and daughter. Under pressure from his father Freya finally decided to marry Laufey, in order that there would be peace, and the Lady Bertha left his father cursing him for his robbing her of her two youngest children.

Continuing on Thor discovered that Freya conceived and bore Laufey a son, but because the child was not born a giant, but the size of a normal Asgardian babe, he rejected the child and ordered it to be cast out into the wilderness to be devoured by beasts. The child had been taken away from Freya and she refused to allow Laufey to touch her. She made to leave Jotunheim but Laufey stopped her and made her a prisoner in her own quarters. Three months after giving birth she died and her body was still on Jotunheim for Laufey refused to part with it. It was then that Laufey broke the treaty and made war on Earth and his father and the armies of Asgard stopped him, defeated him, and took the cask of Ancient Winters from him. It was also when he brought Loki back with him.

According to the Chronicler his older brother Uller led a company of archers after a group of soldiers and some Jotun Priests that had gone into a poorer section of the Jotun capital. There they forcibly took something from a house of a poor widow giantess and ran to the temple of Ymir. The archers whittled down the number of Jotun soldiers till they got to the temple, where they made a last stand, but Uller's men cut them down. Entering the temple they saw the Priests going through a ritual sacrifice and just before the High Priest made to slay the offering Uller and his men slew them all. When Uller went to check to see if the High Priest was dead he discovered something in the fold of the Priest's robe and sent for his father.

Leaving the defeated Laufey in Tyr's protection, Odin and Balder went to the temple and there on the altar was a naked Jotun infant, who was identified from the genetic clan scars upon his body, as the son of Laufey. However upon being held in his father's hands the infant's skin went from blue to pink. Balder claimed that this was the son of his sister Freya as the infant boy resembled her greatly. Odin then declared that the child was now his son and brought him back with him to Asgard. Thor continued to read and came upon a section that described the ritual to awaken the father of all the Frost Giants, Ymir. The ritual called for the blood sacrifice of a man or man-child, preferably a first born male, who would (while still alive) be disemboweled and all their bodily organs dropped down the mouth of the idol of Ymir, and then the living victim was stabbed in the juggler vein and the while the blood sprayed with every heartbeat, he was dropped down the mouth of the idol as well.

Thor could not read any further as he fought to keep the contents of his stomach down; the infant on the altar, the intended victim of such barbarism, was Loki, his brother. Thor stood up and backed away from the book on the table then bent over and vomited.

"My Prince are you all right, shall I call for a Healer?" A thrall walked up to Thor and inquired in concern for his Prince's health.

"No. I do not need a Healer" Thor answered after composing himself and wiping the bile off his mouth, "it is nothing…I…I am sorry for the mess."

Straightening up Thor left the library somewhat embarrassed as the last time he'd been that physically ill he was still a child. He still felt waves of nausea flow over him (knowing now what would have been Loki's fate if Uller had not seen the Priests take him from the Giantess) as he made his way back to his quarters.

Karnilla conjured up a small chest and setting it upon a small table next to her bed pulled a cord that hung from the ceiling next to the bed. A female thrall dressed in a plain white linen dress entered and bowing to her Queen asked how she might be of service.

"Bring me a bowl of pure water and three mil'sk blossoms from my throne" Karnilla ordered without looking up from the near conscious Amora.

"Yes my Queen, as you command I obey" the female thrall turned and left Karnilla's bed chamber to fulfill her mistress' desire.

"The wound is not serious and I can assure you that it will not scar your pretty face my daughter" Karnilla spoke comfortingly to Amora as she opened and looked through the small chest at miniature bottles of various types of powders and ground herbs. She selected three bottles and when the female thrall appeared with large porcelain bowl, a small towel draped over her left arm and with three mil'sk blossoms in her right hand.

Karnilla measured out small exact amounts of the three powders and threw them into the water bowl before returning the bottles to the chest, and by magic, sent it back to her magic vault. She took two of the mil'sk blossoms and tore the petals off and threw them into the water that now bubbled and swirled from the chemicals that reacted with it. The water grew calm and then Karnilla use the third blossom to stir the water and then she sprinkled Amora with the water. Karnilla had the thrall set the bowl upon a table near her bed and sent her to fetch a drinking horn that stayed near her throne. Bowing the female thrall obeyed and left to retrieve the horn. Taking the towel Karnilla placed it into the bowl to absorb water, lifting it out she wrung out the excess water and daubed it gently upon Amora's forehead wound to clean the herbs and the now dried blood from it.

The female thrall returned with the small drinking horn and Karnilla filled it with water from the bowl. She lifted Amora's head up from the pillow and bade her drink from the horn which Amora did but the water was now disgustingly bitter and she made an attempt to push the horn away from her lips.

"You must drink it all, my child, as it will clear your head and ease your pain" Karnilla firmly but gently ordered her daughter-in-hosterage.

With a scowl upon her face Amora took a deep breath and did as the witch Queen of Nornheim requested, drinking the foul concoction as fast as she could before gagging after the last mouthful was swallowed.

Karnilla laid Amora's head back upon the pillow and Loki grinned slightly at the sour look on her face but wiped it off when Amora looked at him before closing her eyes, "She will sleep now for a few hours and then she will be strong enough to fly back to Asgard proper in raven form when I send you back."

"Raven form…you were watching us?" Loki sputtered in surprise at this revelation.

"Of course" Karnilla rose up from her bed and turned to face him, "whoever it is that is making these raids upon your western borderlands clearly intends to make it appear that I am responsible for them. I will not be dragged into a war with Asgard by an unknown party when I have honored the Treaty of Blood for these past ages."

"When I do find out who is responsible, even though I have promised Amora that she may take her vengeance upon them, you will be able to exact your own "justice" on them as well. I'm sure Amora wouldn't mind "sharing"."

"No perhaps she wouldn't" Karnilla smiled with a slight cruel turn of her lips as she gently stroked Amora's forehead then turned to face Loki, "but then she may not be in any condition to exact revenge if you discover who it is."

"What do you mean?" Loki stared back at her incredulously.

"Well my son" Karnilla laughed, "She is at her time so if you wish to have an heir to your throne nine months hence you better strike now. When she awakens in an hour or two she will be very energetic so…" with a wave of her right hand over her left Karnilla produced a small clear vial with a greenish liqueur in it, "you will need this to keep up your strength."

"Strength" Loki looked at her somewhat offended but responded respectfully, "I have never needed help that way and Amora would be the first to tell you so."

"Even so, you will need this as it also increases potency" Karnilla held it up to him and after a short hesitation Loki took it, and, after removing the cork drank it down in one gulp. "Now I will leave you so you may have some privacy."

Karnilla stopped as she walked past him and cast a curious gaze at him, "Do you love her, my son?"

This caught Loki off guard and he stared at her confused. He took a deep breath, and then stood there silently as his eyes turned to his sleeping lover.

"I don't know, I…I have no means of determining that. Loki was an ignored shade, hidden in Thor's shadow, there has never been any female that knew I even existed…other than Amora. She would know what love was as she's had so many lovers and husbands, but not Loki."

"What went through your heart and mind when you saw her injured?"

"Panic" he replied. "I thought I had lost her and I didn't want to lose her as I lost my mother. I didn't think or care if anyone saw me bring her to the lake shore and force the water out of her lungs, even if it meant Asgard knew Loki was still alive and Odin in the dungeons. I just couldn't bear the thought of never having her."

"You are in love my son" Karnilla softly laughed and caressed his right cheek with her hand as she left him and closed the doors to her bed chamber. "This, a woman knows."


	8. Chapter 8

8

Mercenaries milled around restlessly in the dank basement of their employer's hereditary hall, their murmurings were of a threating nature. They had heard through spies that Odin was sending the people of the western border valleys back to their homes and the people had learned about the gold leeching down from the "dragon's back".

They turned to see a black cloaked form walk through a hidden door in the west wall of this pit they had to stand in and they began to crowd around him but backed up when the black cloaked giant also entered the room. Their murmuring quieted somewhat when they saw the Jotun witch follow the giant into the room.

"Your beasts did not kill Odin and his witch whore like you said they would and the Odinsons, Thor and Balder, have found the gold in the valleys" the biggest man among them groused, "now the people are going back to their homes."

"And we have learned that Karnilla has heard about our raids and is sure to be watching the valleys" he complained while the other men murmured in agreement, "no one of us wants to suffer from her magic as we all know the Norn witch is powerful."

"Karnilla is a novice compared to me" the Jotun witch sneered at them. "Should she interfere I will deal with her."

"I will be studying the comings and goings of Thor Odinson and the Einherjar once they make camp and I will find their weaknesses and exploit them" the man under the cowl angrily spat at his hirelings "and you will deal with them accordingly."

"And then what?" the mercenary chief snarled back, "Killing Einherjar will only bring more from Asgard proper and slay the Odinson and ALL of Asgard will descend upon us. Have you figured that in your "studying"?"

"Since I intend to slay Odin, as well as all his bastard whelps, what difference should it make to you if his heir apparent dies first?"

There was more murmuring then they quieted down when the witch began to mumble and they backed away from the traitor and his two cohorts.

"Very well" the chieftain growled "we will wait for your instructions."

As the mercenaries filed out of the basement the black cloaked man turned to the witch and whispered, "Find an interesting death for him as he's causing too much dissention."


	9. Chapter 9

9

Loki/Odin went to order the preparations for the celebration feast and to start the palace thralls on cleaning and setting up the drinking hall. Amora, wearing only a straight and opaque chemise, busied herself with her personal thralls as her personal dress-maker was taking her measurements as she stood on a fur covered block of wood. Another female thrall showed her various reams of off-white cloth and Amora chose one that reflected a pearlized green as an image of the type of wedding dress that Amora wanted slowly spun around in the air just centimeters off the floor. The image dress was trimmed with gold thread embroidered dragons around the sleeves, neck, and hemline and round gold circles around the body of the image dress.

She urged her thralls to work fast as she was to be wed to the King and they had three days to finish it. Amora wanted it to be the most perfect, the most beautiful wedding dress ever seen in Asgard. It had to make all women jealous of her (especially the Lady Sif but Amora didn't say that part out loud but the thought of it did bring a smile to her face).

The wife of Loki Laufeyson, the thought pleased her, as well as intrigued her, as she never in her life thought that Loki would ever come to love her. She hadn't been entirely asleep when Karnilla asked him if he was in love with her and she had heard his answer. In all the trysts she'd had with him over the ages during the anniversary of their capture, and all the gifts of white stags she'd given him he'd never once said that he loved her or even hinted at it. Then HE had been the one to ask her father for her hand in marriage. HE desired a son from her. HE wanted to make her Queen. Perhaps he was in love with her for all these years but simply didn't recognize it as such. He was always the loner, always aloof, always the quiet one, always the ignored one (by everybody but her). Perhaps she had always been in love with Loki as well. Husband after husband, lover after lover she never returned to any of them but Loki was the one constant in her life, the one she always came back to. He was the first boy she kissed, and made love to (perhaps the late Queen Frigga had been right they were destined to be together).

"We have all your measurements Milady" the dress-maker informed her and with a wave of Amora's left hand the image dress exploded into its individual pieces and floated to the long dinner table where the thralls began laying pattern paper over them and began marking and cutting them to Amora's specifications. "We will have it finished by tonight for your fitting, before you prepare to retire and it will be ready for your wedding day."

"Good" Amora smiled. "A fortunate day it was for me when I purchased you Agata, as you have never failed to please me."

"Thank you my Lady" the thrall bowed her head "Will my lady require anything more from me tonight?"

"No, finish quickly and I will reward all of you generously" Amora stepped down from the fur covered block and headed back to her and Loki's bedroom to dress for the dinner meal.

Loki/Odin watched as thralls scurried about scrubbing the walls, tables and the floor to ready the feasting hall for the celebration of the dead. He smiled ever so slightly as he knew his presence made the thralls work faster than they normally would, after all who would wish to incur the wrath of the King? He'd walked through the kitchens earlier and the thralls there were also working diligently to get everything prepared for the feast to be held in less than three days. Loki/Odin turned and to the head thrall said that he was well pleased with how fast the work was progressing and that he expected things to be finished on time. Loki/Odin received assurance that all would be ready from the thrall and the King turned to exit the hall. Before he took dinner in his chambers with Amora there was one more place he wanted to go.

Odin collapsed and nearly passed out from the loss of life energy that Loki stole from him. His one good eye was watery and everything was blurry as he heard Loki exclaim ecstatically as his son absorbed all the drained power into his being.

"In just three days, I will marry Amora and proclaim her to be my Queen. In nine months my son, conceived in your bed, will be born and I will have no further use for you, you bastard" Loki panted with a sneer on his face. Loki turned to leave the dungeon cell then stopped to face Odin, "Out of curiosity, just how WERE you going to put me on the throne of Jotunheim since Laufey rejected me as his son and was going to murder me in Ymir's temple? Were you going to even wait till Laufey was dead, staging a coup de tau and put me there by force?"

"How many Einherjar legions was it going to take to make me their King? How many legions were you going to LEAVE in Jotunheim to make sure your puppet grandson stayed on the throne while YOU ruled Jotunheim through me?" Loki growled at the old man. "I was right that day in the weapon's vault wasn't I? I was nothing more than a stolen relic locked away until YOU had use for me. When WERE you going to tell me the truth about myself, was it the moment you placed me on that frozen rock and reveal to all that I was Laufey's son while YOU crowned me KING?"

Odin was silent during Loki's tirade for what could he say? As much as he would have liked to deny everything Loki said, he knew he couldn't. He had thought to make Loki King of Jotunheim, with shared blood bring about a shared peace, but he found he couldn't part with his adopted son. Only three others (besides himself and Frigga) knew that Loki had been born on Jotunheim, Tyr, Balder, and Uller and the three of them swore themselves to secrecy about Loki's heritage. To protect Loki from all those who'd lost loved ones to the skirmishes and to the last great battle with the Jotuns and would have taken their revenge against him, as Laufey's son, even though he'd been only a babe at that time.

When Loki heard no answer from his stepfather he turned back into Odin and exited the cell as Odin wept as he lay on the floor of his captivity.

As he walked into his antechamber and saw a group of female thralls busy cutting cloth and sewing pieces together on the long dining table he realized that Amora was busy getting her wedding dress prepared. He walked past the female servants to his bed chambers where Amora was waiting for him with a hot meal (roasted pig) and wine on a small table with two chairs.

Closing the doors to his bed chamber Loki/Odin smiled at her as he walked to the table while shifting to his true form to take Amora's head in his hands and pulling it to his own kissed her lips then touched his forehead to hers. "Soon you will be my Queen, my wife, and mother of my son" Loki smiled broadly at her, "and we will rule together becoming the greatest Monarchs in Asgard's history."

"Did you mean it when you said you couldn't bear the thought of losing me?" she questioned him while staring into his hazel eyes.

He looked away from her until she gently took hold of his chin with her right hand and moved his gaze back to her, "You were going into hysterics when you saw me unconscious in the water weren't you?"

"No sense in denying it" he sighed. "Yes, I was. I was afraid that, even though I was there I wouldn't be able to save you. You do recall that I wasn't told of mother's death until after her funeral was over."

"Yes, who do you think sent the Einherjar to tell you?" Amora slipped her hand behind his ear and stroked his long hair to hold the back of his head. "Thor wanted to tell you, to have you attend, but Odin forbade it. He said since you'd never see your mother again in life you'd not see her in death either."

"You risked Odin's wrath to tell me?"

"You risked your life to help me escape from Karnilla when she came to kill us both so what worse could Odin do to me?" Amora smiled lovingly at him. "Now let us eat. My cook worked hard to make this dinner perfect for us and it would be a shame to let it go to waste."

Loki kissed her softly and then pulling her chair from the table for her to sit. "You're right it would be a shame to waste such talent."

Amora sat down and he pushed her chair in while bending down to kiss her neck "As I said earlier, I chose my future Queen wisely.


	10. Chapter 10

10

Loki/Odin was at the launch of the long ships carrying the three legions of Einherjar, Thor, and his three idiot friends, to offer words of encouragement to them and to exhort them to perform their duty to Asgard with the utmost honor. He gave Thor orders to bring back any raider alive for the interrogators to question, as the Vizier murderer was still at large. The Thunder god saluted what he thought was his father and entered his long ship and it lifted off. Loki/Odin watched as it disappeared over the horizon then returned to the Golden Throne Room to hear more cases brought to him for his judgement. There weren't many so it would be a short day and he was glad of that as he wished to spend an uninterrupted day with Amora.

Thor had once again sent Hermodr to Jane to tell her he would be gone from her for some time and didn't know when he'd be able to get back to her. He told her he sorely missed her and hoped all would be resolved soon so he could rejoin her. He stood by the ship's prow and watched the miles sail under him as he headed for a plateau that was on the top of the "dragon's claw" which would give him an unobstructed view of all three valleys (and he could fly to any confrontation with raiders within seconds). The Einherjar with him had loaded food, supplies, building machines, tools and materials to build a command center which would also house his quarters. Upon his father's orders The Warriors Three would each take a valley and a legion to patrol at random times in order to avoid surprised attacks upon the people because of set timed patrols.

The people would be returning to their homes and lands after the feast commemorating the late Vizier and the men who perished on N'as-Keroth so it behooved him to get his and the other command centers up and running before he had to leave for the feast. He was isolated by his thoughts; about the monster Mangog, a sister he never knew he had (which would make Loki his nephew), Loki's life before his father brought him home to Asgard, his father's impending marriage to Amora, the murder of the Vizier, a possible traitor and these blood-thirsty raiders. There was too much going on and he could not see any possible answer to these frustrating questions.

Looking up he saw the "dragon's claw" in the distance and taking a deep breath he readied himself to start this mission given to him by his father.

The Einherjar started building the base camp as soon as they landed and quickly had trees cut down, branches removed and logs notched to build the camp command center and their Prince's living quarters. Thor meanwhile stood at the edge of the "claw" watching the other warriors setting up their own camps.

At his father's command the Einherjar legions were divided into companies and they set up camps at various places spaced around the lake, rivers, and the fjord but still well within distance of each other. Should one be attacked, another camp could come to their aid. His father had decided that each company would break up into units of ten to patrol (five units to actually patrol, three to help the people when they arrived, and two to protect the camp) at random times and areas least the raiders should grow bold enough to make an appearance.

Wooden buildings and tents sprang up with precision military quickness as the Einherjar set up their camps. With one unit from each company currently either hunting or fishing (in the lake, rivers, and the fjord) as fires were built to prepare their evening meals. It seemed to Thor that each company was having some success in their hunting and fishing endeavors so he and the men would eat well tonight. An Einherjar warrior with a scanner stood near him and was scanning the three valleys checking for any possible raider lurking in the scrub brush and trees to spy on them when the man called out to Thor that he'd discovered something unusual.

"What have you found? Is it a raider?" Thor queried, eager to catch one of these mass murderers and discover who was behind these atrocities and bring them to well-deserved Asgardian justice.

"I do not know my Prince" the guardsman glanced at Thor then turned his attention back to his squared scanner, "but there is something strange about that stag across the lake by that small grove of fruit trees. It doesn't completely register as a stag even though it gives all the appearance of being one."

"Is it an illusion?"

"No my Lord, it is real, but the scanner cannot tell me just what it is" the Einherjar replied back with some confusion coloring his voice.

Thor watched the stag and surmised that if he flew down to the stag; it would only run away and he'd never catch it a-foot, if he threw his hammer, it might avoid it and run away. Unhooking his hammer from the belt loop he held it skyward and the sky above them became dark and cloudy as lightning struck the hammer which Thor then directed at the stag. The brute tried to jump and dash away but the bolt followed it and quickly struck it down. Twirling the hammer above his head he flew from the "dragon's claw" to where the stunned stag lay and began to examine the beast. It did indeed look just like a stag, but since when did a deer have a charm hanging from its ear? Picking the beast up and draping it over his shoulder he whirled his hammer again and flew back to his base of command.

"Find rope and bind this changeling's legs and let us see what we have here" Thor commanded the Einherjar that gathered to see what he'd brought back with him as he dropped it to the ground. Two men left the group and dashed off to retrieve the rope requested by their Prince. They returned with them in only minutes, binding the fore and hind legs of it as another one threw a bucket of icy cold water upon the deer to awaken it. It jerked its eyes open and gasped from the shock of being hit by the frigid water.

It struggled to stand but Thor laid his left foot upon its neck to keep it on the ground, "Change to your true form and tell us why you are here and it will go well with you, otherwise you will face the interrogators tender mercies. At any rate we will discover why you're here spying out the land."

"My Queen commands and I obey Odinson" the stag became a Norn warrior that sneered back at Thor.

"Why would Karnilla send you to spy on us? Speak Norn!"

"I do not spy ON you Asgardian but FOR you because of these raiders impersonating us" the Norn growled back at him. "My Queen honors the treaty of blood and at the request of YOUR King she sent us hence."

"At my father's request?" Thor exclaimed confused. His father did not mention any of this to him when they set out to patrol the land. "How many are there of you here in these western lands?"

"That you do not need to know Odinson" the Norn sneered, "only know that it is not any of my comrades making these raids. Should one of these false Norns attack, we will alert you and you may deal with them as you see fit. We are loyal to our Queen and obey her commands."

Thor thought upon these words the Norn told him and turning to the nearest Einherjar ordered him to untie the Norn and free him. The Norn was quickly untied and rubbing his wrists to restore circulation he shifted into the shape of a great horned owl and flew away.

"Karnilla aligned with Asgard?" the Einherjar spoke up in disbelief as all knew that she was a sworn enemy to Asgard and hated Odin with an unreasoning passion.

"Take one of the small ships and fly back to Asgard proper and seek audience with my father" Thor commanded, "and tell him these raiders may be shape shifters or have some sort of charm or spell to disguise them which is how no one ever sees them before they attack."

"Yes my Prince" the Einherjar saluted and left to fulfill his orders.

Sighing with disgust Thor angrily pondered what the Norn had just told him. Why didn't father tell him that he'd allied himself with Karnilla and had gotten an agreement from her to help find these raiders? Karnilla was no friend to Asgard and no Asgardian, other than Balder, would be safe traveling there. So how could his father speak with her, request and receive her aid? He scowled as he thought of these things as well as all the other questions that bombarded his mind for the past few days. The more he sought for answers to these mysteries, the more questions sprouted to choke out any hope of getting them.

Loki/Odin was a bit miffed when a female thrall asked him not to enter his chambers as her mistress was trying on her wedding dress and it would bring ill fortune if he was to see her in it before the wedding.

Chuckling to himself he told the thrall that he would be in the late Queen Frigga's herb garden and when Amora was finished with her fitting someone was to inform him so that he could freely enter his own chambers. Loki/Odin turned and walked away with the thought that maybe he should cast a concealment spell and take a peek at this gown Amora was having made, but a second thought made him head for the herb garden instead. Why tempt fate any more than he'd already had.

The Asgardian sun was setting and made a beautiful sunset that he wished Amora was here to see. A gentle breeze swirled the scents from several herbs in the air about him. This place always made him feel peaceful, made him feel safe. Now however it also made him feel sorrowful as his mother taught him the many uses for these herbs and flowers as well as magic in this garden. She would enthusiastically congratulate him when he remembered what she taught him about the herbs or successfully completed a spell as a child. Without realizing it he wound up at the small clearing behind the oak tree where Amora found him so many lifetimes ago and gave him the white stag made of sticks. He smiled when the thought of bringing his and Amora's son to this garden and teaching the ancient knowledge to him, teaching him to be a great King, just as Frigga had with him.

"I was told you'd be found here" Amora spoke up from behind him.

Dressed in a dark green gown with large gold rings decorating it she walked up to him, slipped her arms around his neck and mumbled a spell of concealment before kissing him. He shifted back to his own form as he returned her kiss and dissolved their clothes as he lowered her to the ground where he made love to her like the first time, an age ago.

A figure cloaked in black stood next to the Jotun witch as she revealed the placements of the Asgardian camps based in the western borderlands and he cursed under his breath. Three legions of Einherjar equally spaced out in each valley and he watched as patrols set out in random directions at random times in the air as well as on the ground with the Odinson based on the "dragon's claw" to oversee all the valleys. Driving the people away again would not be easy and dealing with the Einherjar at the same time would be nearly impossible, but the witch, Angurbodi, assured him that she could deal with the Asgardians and Karnilla, should she interfere.

"See to it that you can" the cloaked man snarled, "I've put too much into this coup, risked too much to lose. I will sit the throne of Asgard, painted with Odin's blood, and use that witch whore of his as a footstool."

The tall lanky cloaked man turned and stalked away from the Jotun witch as he left the subterranean torch-lit room. Cursed be Odin and all his kin the cloaked man steamed with anger at being frustrated in all his careful planning. Climbing the winding stairs he attempted to calm himself down as it wouldn't do for anyone to see him in this foul mood as gossip travels far too fast to contain. With each step he took deep breaths and reminded himself of the great prize that would be his, once Odin was dead. When he reached the secret door to his great hall he opened it slightly and spied around the hallway where it opened up at. When he saw no one about he removed the cloak, tossing it over an unlit brazier, and the black-haired man in green leather and shiny brass body armor safely walked into the hallway shutting the secret door without glancing back.

Angurbodi silently raged at her "employer" and master while she waved away the images of the Odinson and the soldiers with him in the western border-lands. There were times she wished she had died at the hands of Helblindi, the son of Laufey, who betrayed her after her magic put him on his late father's throne. This Asgardian was no better than the Jotun scoundrel she had served but she wasn't idle in the times he left her alone in this dank dungeon hall. She had been spying on Odin and the witch called the Enchantress for some time now and she knew that something was more than unusual in Odin's behavior.

Why did he feel it so vital to cast spells of concealment when he was in his own chambers? This he did whether he was with the Asgardian witch or alone. Why did he also go down to the Asgardian dungeons to one particular cell on a regular basis? Who was in that cell and why were they so important to the Allfather? Frustrated because she could not break through the spells of concealment he was casting despite all her efforts, she none-the-less, kept spying on the Asgardian King. Soon, she hoped, he would make a mistake, and then she would have the means to his downfall as well as the possible means of gaining her freedom from the bastard she had to call "master" as she fingered the charmed shackle he'd used to enslave her and protect himself.

She called forth images of Odin in the smoke and saw him go into his late wife's herb garden alone. After some time the Asgardian witch joined him and then they both simply vanished from her sight. Damn, he had placed the two of them under concealment and Angurbodi could not penetrate it with spells of her own. Snarling she swiped her hand through the smoke and the image of the herb garden disappeared.

Amora had her female thralls cover up her wedding dress, as it had been sewn together and she'd done the final fitting before it was placed on a dressmaker's mannequin, to wait for her wedding day and so that Loki/Odin would not see it before the two of them returned to Odin's chambers. Arm in arm they walked passed the doorway guards and after closing the doors Loki/Odin cast a spell of concealment. Shifting back to himself, Loki headed for the pitcher of wine on the long table and poured two glasses of white wine.

"Here's to us" he grinned as he handed one glass to Amora, "to our wedding, to our son, and to our long rule in Asgard."

They, clinking their glasses together and with satisfied smiles, drank as Loki continued his toast, "And to the well-deserved death of Odin, which cannot come too soon as far as I'm concerned."

Amora was silent as she could see that Loki was earnest in his plan to kill Odin. She kept her thoughts from being revealed on her face as Loki's hatred of the Allfather made her uncomfortable.

"What shall we order up for dinner tonight my love?" Amora set her glass down and snaked her arms about Loki's neck. "Shall we call upon your cook or mine?"

"Why not use your cook for tonight's meal?" Loki grinned as he set his own glass down and wrapped his arms about her waist. "How does roasted hare sound to you?"

"Very well if I may say so, and my cook has a delightful recipe for hare that you should try" Amora smiled back at him as she kissed him teasingly, "so shift back into Odin-form and I shall call a servant to order our meal.

As he changed back into his step-father's form Amora released him to pull the summon cord which quickly brought a female thrall into the antechamber room. Amora gave the order and the thrall left to fulfill it as quickly as possible as Loki/Odin poured another glass of wine.

Thor held a mug of mead in his right hand as he stood at the ledge of "the dragon's claw" scanning the three valleys which was now dotted with tents and cooking fires as his legions of Einherjar settled in for the night. The command building, his as well as those for his three companions, were up and there was a good fire going in the center of his, to cook meals and ward off the night chill. There were Einherjar out patrolling, in the air in the small ships as well as foot patrols and so far there was nothing to report. His thoughts turned to Jane, wondering what she was doing at this very moment. He wished that he could have brought her along, but his father had banished all mortals from Asgard because of her.

His father might forbid him to bring Jane home with him but he could not banish his love for Jane from his heart. Even though Loki hated him, it had been Loki who tried to make him face logical reasoning. Jane was mortal, and she would age, wither and die in just a handful of decades while he would remain untouched by time. Would she still love him then? Would he still love her? Would it be kinder, to her, if he was to break off the relationship (as Jane called it) marry an Asgardian woman who would not only give him children, but spend the next several thousand years growing old with him? Instead of spending his days mourning for a mortal lover long turned to dust. He'd been happy with Jane, Darcy and Erik Selvig in New Mexico and if his friends hadn't come to Midgard to tell him of Loki's lie about his father being dead he would still be with Jane. Working with her, married to her having children with her and making a life with her. If he'd stayed on Midgard then perhaps Loki wouldn't have tried to destroy Jotunheim, he wouldn't have had to destroy the Bifrost. Wouldn't have the horror of watching Loki fall into the void and definitely would not have had to fight Loki and the Chitari to protect the Earth. Loki wouldn't have been given a life sentence in the dungeons, wouldn't be dead now because of him. And Loki would be King now, as he knew after the incident with Malekith that he didn't have the wits or the cunning to be a King. With Loki dead though, what other choice was there? Take up the throne, or, watch his father take another wife in the hopes that Amora could give him a son to take the throne after him.

The sun was setting and he could smell the fish and the stag that was cooking on turning spits over the great center fire in his cabin and his stomach growled at him. He would have a day's preparation for duty rosters and giving his next in command orders for while he was gone to the feast then, then he wasn't sure what he would do before he returned here. Taking a deep drink of his mead, he turned and walked back into his cabin and his dinner.

The young Einherjar warrior Thor sent finally made it to Asgard and was escorted to Odin's chambers by four palace guards. The guards at the doors to the Allfather's quarters knocked and heralded the young soldier's arrival from the western borders. Loki/Odin ordered the young man to enter and the guards opened the door for the soldier.

"I bring news from my Prince Thor for you my Liege" the Einherjar bowed his head then saluted as he came to attention.

"What does my son have to report?" Loki/Odin inquired.

"We found a Norn warrior guised as a deer who said that he spies out the land at your request and that the raiders may be shape shifters, either naturally or by charms or spells."

"That would make sense" Amora spoke up, "that could be why none were ever taken captive or their dead found."

Four thralls brought in their King's dinner, placed it on the small table in Odin's bedroom and left while Loki/Odin sat in a chair at the long dinner table chewing on his mustache. It was a while before he answered back, "Tell my son that I had Amora contact Karnilla for aid. Whoever is responsible for these outrages clearly wish Asgard to go to war with Nornheim and Karnilla has the right to defend her realm. After all, Amora here is her daughter-in-hosterage."

"According to reports these raiders came out of nowhere and seemingly disappeared into nothingness" Loki/Odin stood up and faced the Einherjar. "Tell my son that he should scan for large concentrations of small animals, rodents in particular."

"Rats, rabbits, hares or squirrels would be noticeable in great numbers" Amora joined in, "but a mouse can hide under blades of grass, even under the nose of the cat, and you'd never know they were there."

"This traitor must have a witch or warlock in their employ and to keep that many mercenaries in guise must be using great amounts of magical energy" Loki/Odin continued. "Tell my son to also scan for any mystic residue and hunt down these butchers, give them no rest, and send some back alive for the interrogators."

"Yes my King" the warrior saluted, bowed and exited the room. The guards at the door opened them to let him pass then closed them behind him.

Muttering a spell of concealment Loki shifted back to his own form and refilling the wine glasses he gave one to Amora as he motioned her to the dinner table, "I'm actually feeling good about this nuisance for once and the faster it gets resolved the better. I thank you for your insight my dear and I'm also thankful for the fact that we both think alike."

Loki pulled her chair out from the table for her to be seated then pushed it in for her and they enjoyed the roasted hare in wine sauce.


	11. Chapter 11

11

Loki found it hard to sleep as his mind was racing at light speed and he finally gave up and sat up in Odin's bed with a sigh. Glancing over at Amora he started to feel a might envious as she was sound asleep and dreaming as he could see her eyes moving under her eyelids. He thought of taking a peek of her dream using a spell Karnilla had taught him until she moaned and muttered his name. Wouldn't be necessary as he had a good enough imagination to figure out what she was dreaming about.

Putting his hands together he touched them to his lips and contemplated the events of the past week; Thor defeating the monster Mangog, the Vizier murdered, gold and precious gems being found in "the dragon's back" mountain range. An explanation of how the raiders were operating (if not who they were as they definitely weren't Norns) procuring Karnilla's help in trying to apprehend the raiders, and sending Thor to protect the inhabitants and act as a deterrent to any more raids. As well as getting him away from Asgard proper for as much time as possible before his idiot brother could see through his disguise. Loki doubted that the monster had anything to do with the other events; Mangog had been nothing more than an aberration, while he had the feeling that the murder of the Vizier, the attempt on his and Amora's life, and the near killing of the Vizier's man thrall were connected to these raiders and their master. As he reviewed the past week's events he realized that both attacks on his high councilor and his thrall had to do with scrolls…where had Amora said her father was found? In the hall of records dealing with land acquisitions, "Oh Amora, your father was sharper than the teeth of a Norn devil worm."

What if the brains behind these massacres had tried to purchase the land from the owners then ran them off by the raiders when they refused to sell. Then he purchased the land of those butchered by them. There would be records of each sale and the purchaser's name would be plain for all to see. The Vizier had learned the name of the traitor and the library thrall murdered him to protect his master and himself no doubt.

"You're not even half as clever as you think you are bastard" Loki said softly as he gently, slowly pulled the covers away from himself and the green and gold light dressed him as he eased himself out of Odin's bed so as not to awaken Amora. Uttering a spell of complete concealment as he left his step father's bedroom and then transformed into a bat and flew out the balcony of the antechamber.

The youthful thrall worked hard to remove the blood stain from the marble floor but he was not having much success as it had been too long on the floor and set into the stone. He still scrubbed at it as his master wanted it gone as it would be a remembrance of the High Councilor's death and blight upon the reputation of the royal library.

"What are you doing?"

The youth looked up from his toil to see a boy child, dressed in a gold sleep shirt standing in front of him staring at him with big hazel eyes.

Wiping his nose with the back of his right hand the youth answered back respectfully, "Cleaning up this blood spot as my master commanded my little lord."

"That's blood! How'd it get there? Did you cut yourself?" the child asked wide eyed with awe.

"No, I didn't cut myself my little lord" the thrall nearly started to cry but kept himself in control, "the High Councilor was stabbed here and this is his blood."

"Why are you crying?" the boy asked.

"The Vizier, when I would wait on him when he came to the library, was always kind to me" again the thrall brought himself back in control of his emotions, "I found him and had to tell the Lady Amora about what had happened."

Tears rebelled against his attempt to hold in his sorrow and they raced down the youth's cheeks as he wiped the drainage from his nose on the back of his hand.

"Was he reading these scrolls when it happened?"

"He may have been little lord…" the youth broke off speaking to stare at the stacks of scrolls on the shelf next to him. "These are stacked out of order."

The young thrall dropped the brush he was scrubbing the floor with and wiped his hands on his linen shirt before picking one of the scrolls up to look at its catalog number. He fingered through the other scrolls and his face became very perplexed as he checked number after number and he discovered that they weren't misplaced, there were scrolls missing.

"What's wrong? What's the matter with the scrolls?" the child continued to inquire of the thrall.

"There are scrolls missing" the thrall forgot the child's presence as he stood up to check the other stacks on the case and he discovered that there were scrolls missing from them as well.

"I must tell the head librarian" the youth stopped and his face scrunched in undecided anxiety for his master would be angry if awakened in the middle of the night and it wouldn't be an emergency.

"Why don't you tell him? Would he beat you if you did?" The boy's eyes widened and his face mirrored excitement.

"Maybe" the youth stopped to think and then thought out loud, "I could check the records log book as each scroll's number is recorded and who made the land purchase?"

"Can I go with you?"

"Yes little lord if you'd like to" the youth responded as he led the way to where the record books were kept and the child ran after him and took a hold of his larger hand to walk with the thrall.

The young man took the boy child to a book case that was located right in front of the head librarian's office and with his free hand the thrall began to look for the volume that the missing scrolls were recorded in. Finding the book he wanted he took it down from its place on the shelf and finding a small reading table he set the book down upon it. Letting loose of the child's hand he opened the book and went looking for the numbers of the missing scrolls. His eye's widened with surprise and confusion as he came crossed pages that were ripped out of the book and flipping through the volume he discovered more pages that had been removed.

"Somebody tore up your book! That's bad isn't it?"

"Yes little lord it is and now I really have to wake up the head librarian" the youth sighed with resignation, "and I will most likely get a beating until I can tell my master why I had to wake him."

While the youth hesitated, dreading what he knew he had to do, the child looked over the book and turned some pages while studying them with some interest.

"I have to get back to my parents quarters before my brother falls asleep as we were playing hide and search and it was my turn to search" the child scampered off leaving the thrall to his inevitable beating and when he was out of the thrall's sight the child transformed into a bat and flew out of the library.

A part of her was beginning to hate what she was about to do, but she had followed Loki down to the dungeons the last time he had disappeared on her (when he thought she was sleeping) and she discovered he went into a particular cell holding one prisoner. Under the guise of the complete concealment spell that Loki had taught her she had sneaked out of their bedroom. Leaving an illusion of herself in bed sleeping, and she walked to the cell she had seen him enter. She saw a ragged old man lying on the cell's floor and wondered if this old beggar was who she was seeking? She created an illusion of herself and appeared in front of the old man. It took several seconds for the elderly man to realize she was there and when he looked at her she gasped, "Odin!"

"Why have YOU come here? Are you going to torment me as well?"

"No" his weakened condition shocked her as she had always seen him as an all-powerful figure, "I have come to save your life."

His one eye widened with disbelief as he stared at her, "Why would you wish to save my life when you are about to marry my murderer and be duplicitous in his crimes against the crown?"

"You may not believe me, I care not, but you well deserve death for the misery you put him through all his life" Amora held her hands vertically and by a spell produced a small leather pouch and it floated to him. "Take that with your next meal and it will fake death. When Loki has your "body" disposed of, I will substitute another for you and have you moved to another cell to live out the rest of your life. I will make sure you have better care and food and I will disguise you with a spell I learned from Karnilla."

"Why would you do that for me?" Odin held the small pouch in his hand as he looked at her with distrust.

"All his life he wanted your love, your approval of his achievements and himself and you ignored him" Amora knit her fingers together as she walked around the fallen King, "You ignored me as well, but on the RARE occasion that you did notice me, you were kind to me and my beloved father considered you his most trusted friend. I will save your life ONLY for the sake of that friendship and nothing more. I will see to it that you have a proper funeral, and if fate is kind, you will see my beloved foster-mother in Valhalla."

She disappeared from Odin's sight and he pondered on her words and wept as she spoke the truth while he stared at the small pouch in his hand.

Amora breathed in a frightened gasp as she saw that Loki was not in bed with her illusion and she held her hands up and searched the rooms for any trace of magical spells. She closed her eyes as she breathed a sigh of relief that Loki wasn't there as he must have gone on some nocturnal wandering. He hadn't seen through her ruse, so she didn't waste much time musing about where he had gone. She waved her hand through the illusion dissolving it and then making her clothes disappear while she climbed back into bed.

She had drifted off somewhat but hadn't fallen entirely to sleep when she sensed that Loki had returned and with a muffled groan she picked her head up off her pillow, "Why aren't you in bed? Where were you off to now?"

"I went down to the library where your father had been attacked and discovered something very interesting" Loki sat down at the edge of the bed next to her. "It seems that there were scrolls dealing with land acquisitions that have gone missing and the records of what they were have also gone missing."

"Why would you go looking for mortgages and deeds?"

"It's only a supposition, but let's assume our traitor originally was play acting as a benevolent sympathizer. He purchases farms and entire villages in order to keep people out of the area while he mined the horde from the mountain and the waters. When the jingle of gold couldn't induce some of the people to leave he started hiring mercenaries to remove them in a more permanent fashion. So" he started to stroke her long golden hair, "who do we know that dwells in the western borders that would have the finances to purchase all that land?"

"Lord Ragnor, Lord Kolbjorn, Lord Thorbiartl, and there's also Lord Erlick and those are the ones that I can think of at the moment."

"Now out of those four Lords who would be our most likely candidate for traitor?" Loki quizzed her.

"Well we can dismiss Lord Ragnor as the only thing that fat fool can plan is his meals" Amora thought, calling upon her personal knowledge of the four Asgardian Lords. "Lord Kolbjorn can barely keep two copper coins together due to his gambling. Lord Thorbiartl has the wits of a common worm and Lord Erlick has lost a sizeable amount of crops and livestock to these raiders. If it weren't for the fact that he owns a son of Sleipnir he wouldn't make any money at all as the horse is unbeatable when it races."

"One of them may or may not be our traitor but it will be enough to have Heimdall keep an eye on all of them" Loki rose from the bed to go to the small dining table to pour himself a glass of wine "and in the morning the two of us should go down to the library to have a chat with the Head Librarian."

The Head Librarian was most congenial when he quickly met the King and Lady Amora when they entered the library and showed them where the High Councilor had been attacked. The youth was still there trying to scrub the blood off the floor and as Loki had surmised he'd received a beating for waking his master up to tell him of the missing scrolls.

"This is where the Lord Vizier was found my King" the Librarian stated "and may I offer my condolences to you my Lady for your loss."

Amora thanked the Librarian but her attention was on the blood stain, her father's blood, on the floor.

"What scrolls was the Vizier looking at when he was here as I assume that's why he was here?" Loki/Odin asked of the Librarian.

"We don't know my Liege as there are scrolls missing and the records of them were torn out of the record book."

"Who was it that first noticed that these scrolls were missing?" Loki/Odin questioned the Librarian who hesitated before he answered that he had. Which got a look of surprise from the thrall who was smart enough to remain silent and quick enough to look away before the Librarian saw him.

"What happened to your face boy?" Loki/Odin inquired and he saw the boy quickly glance at then look away from the Librarian with a worried look as he knew that the youth would surely receive another beating if he answered truthfully.

"Aren't you the thrall who found my father and came to tell me what had happened to him?" Amora finally noticed the boy on the floor.

"Yes my Lady" he answered back with his eyes respectfully on the ground.

"Who did this to you?" Amora reached down to cup the boy's chin in her right hand and raise it to look at her.

Fearfully the youth quickly glanced at the head Librarian then back to Amora before stuttering an answer, "No…no one my Lady…it is nothing."

Loki/Odin saw Amora's eye brows knit in anger as she cast her gaze at the Head Librarian, "For what reason was this thrall beaten?"

Without either of them noticing Loki/Odin motioned with his fingers and the same child that he used to discover the missing scrolls appeared from behind him. The child walked up to stand slightly in front of him to his right, "Oh, he did beat you for waking him up!" and then he had the illusion look up at him, "He found someone stole some scrolls from the shelf and tore up a book."

The child then asked Loki/Odin, "You're the King aren't you?"

"Yes child I am" it was proving hard for him not to burst out laughing; first at the look on the Head Librarian's face which was descending into abject fear of what Amora and he would do to him, and the shocked look of recognition on Amora's face as she knew who 'the child' was.

"This thrall comes to you with evidence concerning the murder of my father" her temper was flaring to volcanic proportions, "and you beat him!"

A short drover's whip appeared in her hand and she started beating the Head Librarian with it and he fell to his knees begging for mercy as she showed him none. After a score of welts appeared on the buffoon's face and arms Loki/Odin stopped her, "I believe he has learned the folly of his ways my dear and if you continue to lash him I may need to find another Librarian."

Amora was breathing hard from anger and the exertion of whipping the fool on the floor and Loki/Odin produced a small coin bag and threw it at the Librarian, "Write up a bill of sale for this thrall and have it sent to my quarters."

"Welcome to the King's household" Amora said kindly to the thrall, "now go to the Healing Room and have the healers do something about that face and make sure you tell them the Lady Amora sent you."

The youth stood up and bowing low he thanked her and left for the Healing Room as the whip disappeared from Amora's hand and Loki/Odin steered her out of the library before she did any more damage to the stupid fool.

"Go with the thrall and keep an eye on him while I talk further with this idiot as this little altercation may get back to our traitor. The boy's life may be in danger now and we cannot afford to lose any important information he may have" Loki/Odin whispered quietly to her in the doorway. She nodded her head silently agreeing with his logic and she left him as Loki/Odin tormented the Librarian further with 'the child'.

"There was a book" the child spoke up trying to sound helpful but only resulted in digging the Head Librarian's grave deeper which made Loki/Odin smile inwardly. "Somebody bad ripped out pages from it so that thrall couldn't find out what scrolls were missing."

"Show me this 'book' that this child speaks of" Loki/Odin commanded, "I wish to see it for myself."

"Yes…yes my King" The Head Librarian got up from the floor to lead the way to the book shelf where the record books were kept and after a brief check of the titles on the various books on the case. Pulling one off the case he walked it over to a small reading table and opened it up to where the first ripped out page was. Loki/Odin scanned the remaining pages and went looking for the other missing ones.

"Have you any idea what these missing pages pertained to and who it was that was recorded as seller and new owner?" Loki/Odin examined the jagged edges of the missing pages hoping he could gather at least an idea of who was responsible for the murder of the Vizier and the attempt on his and Amora's life as well. With a scowl upon his face he realized that what little was left on the jagged remains would do him no good.

"No my King, that was the duty of the thrall they found in the sewers."

"Have you no copies of these records, or of the missing scrolls?" Loki/Odin was seriously reconsidering his stopping Amora from beating this fool and felt like beating him himself.

"No my Liege" the Librarian said fearfully.

"From now on you WILL keep a second copy of the records of all scrolls dealing with land acquisitions and keep it under lock and key or I WILL find a replacement for you" Loki/Odin turned away from the idiot librarian and headed back to his quarters. When the thrall came back from the Healing Room he had questions that he hoped the youth could answer. He had the 'child' walk with him and he had the 'child' utter simplistic nonsense to make it seem that the illusion was telling him about its brother who was still playing search and hide. Loki/Odin told the 'child' he should go back to his parents now when he reached his/Odin's quarters.

The 'child' took off running and laughing that his brother would never find him and with a hint of a smirk Loki/Odin opened the doors of his antechamber and entered it, turned and shut the doors behind him. He would stay in Odin-form when Amora returned with the thrall and then he would question the youth to see what he knew of these missing scrolls. If he did know something useful, then he would have to keep the boy under careful guard as the traitor might try to kill him as well.

When Thor received his father's message, from the Einherjar he'd sent to Asgard, he had runners take a message to the three lower base command centers to set their scanners to look for small rodents and any mystic residue. Standing next to a warrior holding a scanner (who was searching the three valleys one quadrant at a time) and so far there didn't seem to any trace of either large mass gathering of vermin or magic. Still, if father was right, it would explain how these raiders could inflict so much brutality upon the people, so much damage to dwellings and livestock without taking any real casualties themselves. What had him totally flabbergasted was his father aligning himself with Karnilla of Nornheim? Karnilla who hated his father with an uncontrollable passion? While Karnilla was the reigning ruler of Nornheim, and she did have the right to defend her realm (for who-ever this traitor was it did seem as if he wanted to incite a renewed war between Asgard and Nornheim in order to distract his father from this culprit's treachery) could they really trust her not to side with this traitor against his father.

"My Prince I think I've found something" the Einherjar excitedly spoke up as he glanced in Thor's direction.

"What is it that you've spied?" Thor was jerked from his musings to discover just what the scanner had found.

"Just south of the lake there is a field of grass and it seems to be riddled with small holes. It also has a mystic residue just as the Allfather guessed it might."

"Send a runner to Hogun and to tell him to gather as many men as he can and have them all carry torches and whatever dried grass and dead wood they can find and meet me at this field" Thor cast his gaze at the field in question and had a feeling that for the first time since these raids started and the attempt on his father's life this evil was running out of time and justice was aborning.

Hogun, the grim, exited his command cabin to greet the runner from Thor and after listening to his friend and Prince's orders he turned and commanded the unit commanders around him to order every man to pick up dried wood or cut dried grass and follow him to the grassy field. One unit of Einherjar he ordered to bring torches and then he made for the field himself.

Hogun had his men surround the field and put up a barricade of dried grass, dead wood and sticks which began to encircle the field. To make the barricade higher he ordered Einherjar to cut down some dead trees, laying them upon the dried grass when there wasn't enough fallen wood available.

Einherjar with torches encircled the field waiting for orders to start the fires as Hogun looked up at the dragon's claws to see Thor standing at the ridges edge.

Twirling his hammer above his head the Thunder god took off and flew to the great lake where again he whirled his hammer but this time he rose straight up as he formed a wind funnel that sucked the water up from the lake. He directed it towards the field and tons of water came crashing down upon it as Hogun gave the order to light the barrier. Flames shot up and ran the length of the barrier as he saw mice run from the field to try and escape the crashing water but the fire forced them back. Many dived back down their holes trying to escape but rushing waters followed them and they drown in the small tunnels. While others swam about looking for any type of escape but they found none and the fierce power of the water overcame them. Those that braved the flames perished in them as the blaze grew ever skyward driving even the Einherjar back from it.

Thor calmed the winds and the storm dissipated as the flames gradually died down and they could now see that instead of dead mice there were the bodies of men floating in the still swirling waters.

"It seems father and the Lady Amora was correct in their assumptions" Thor said to his companion as he landed next to Hogun.

"We have struck a telling blow to this traitor's plans of usurping the Allfather's rule" Hogun replied, "but will he not retaliate when he discovers what we have done? He may make another attempt at assassination?"

"Perhaps" Thor sighed in consternation, "but gather up the dead and burn them when the water recedes, then line the roads with their armor. Should you find one still alive, bind him fast and guard him well for father will want to question him."

It took most of the day to cut down the trees needed for the pyre to dispose of the dead raiders. It peeved Thor that no survivor was found among the dead, so who it was that hired them was still unknown and they were no closer to apprehending this traitor. Hogun's men dug many bodies out of the drenched soil and from their armor identified them as coming from the same roving band of marauders that had attacked Vanaheim before the alinement happened.

Two more areas were discovered having mystic residue and Thor used water from the river and the fjord to drown them and he discovered that some of them came from other than the realms of Yggdrasil. He wondered, as the bodies were disposed of by fire, just how far this traitor's reach was. He came to the conclusion that he should leave earlier than he had expected to, in order to warn his father and the Lady Amora, that this treacherous usurper might take revenge upon them for loosing as many men as he had. As much as he had doubts about Amora's intentions towards his father he had no wish to see his foster-sister harmed just as he never would have liked to see Loki threatened in any fashion.

"We have struck the first blow against this traitor" Thor told his three friends thoughtfully. "No doubt we can expect some kind of retaliation soon. I will make my way back to Asgard proper tonight to report to father and join his body guards."

"Keep searching the grasslands and fields for more of these mercenaries and good hunting my friends" clasping Hogun's arm in friendship Thor bade farewell to them all. Whirling Mjolnir over his head he flew back to the dragon's claw to inform the legion commander of his plans and encouraged them to continue the hunt for more mercenaries. Taking a small boat Thor lifted off and headed home, to Asgard.

Despite his desire to help find the Vizier's murderer the youth was very little help in revealing what was on the missing pages of the record book or on the stolen scrolls as it wasn't a part of his duties to know what was on them. He only cataloged them properly on the appropriate shelves and maintained a clean environment in the library. The only one he had witnessed the writing of was a purchase of a small farm by Lord Erlick that bordered his property that would gain him access to one of the smaller rivers in the middle valley.

"Well it was worth the try" Loki/Odin poured himself a glass of wine when he realized he was no closer to discovering this scoundrel's identity. "Now, what do we do with our latest acquisition?"

"Leave that to me" Amora teased and grinned when she saw his eye pop slightly with a hint of jealousy since the boy was a comely youth. She walked over to pull the cord to summon a thrall and when Odin's man thrall appeared she ordered him to fetch her father's man thrall, who had just been released from the healing room to attend her and the King, and the thrall bowed and left.

"Old Ake was like a mother hen to me as a child and he still fusses over me" she explained to Loki/Odin "so he never asked to take a wife and at least as far as I know never sired a child."

When the old thrall appeared Amora warmly greeted him with a smile, "Ake, the King has purchased a new thrall for his household. I wish you to train him to be as great a man thrall as you had been to my father."

"My Lady" the old man cast a fearful glance at her, "am I amiss in my duties to the King that I should train my replacement?"

Loki/Odin wondered at the familiarity of the thrall as he doubted Odin would have tolerated such behavior from a thrall.

"No you silly old thing" Amora laughed, "I give him to you as a son to raise properly."

"A son?"

"Yes as a son, you silly old bird" Amora grinned at her old caretaker "and he shall look after you in your old age as a father should be looked after."

"Well, have you a name boy?" Ake inspected the young thrall and the boy seemed to be sufficient to gain his approval.

"Magnus…" the boy replied and quickly added "…my father."

"There, all is settled" she grinned satisfied "now off you go and get him settled in and have him fed. Tomorrow I wed the king and both of you will be dressed in your finest livery to wait upon your Liege."

The youth Magnus followed Ake from Odin's chambers and Amora went to the table to pour herself a glass of wine, "Tomorrow I become the wife and Queen of Loki, King of Asgard but I see no reason to delay any celebration until tomorrow."

She took a sip of her wine and then set the glass down to embrace Loki/Odin and kiss him as he changed from Odin-form to his own and returned her kiss holding her closely to himself.

Upon arrival Thor made straight to his father's quarters and reported what had happened and his father seemed pleased with the results and congratulated him for service well delivered.

"Now mayhap this murderer will show his hand and my father can finally be avenged" Amora said fiercely as she clenched her fists which shook somewhat with inner rage.

"How many dead?" Loki/Odin inquired of the Thunder god.

"When I left father the count had reached a thousand and they were still pulling bodies from the mud and muck when I left. I gave orders to pile the armor of the brigands along the roadsides, as they burned the bodies, as a warning to this traitor as his time is now short."

"Well done my son and let us hope he understands your message."

"You'll need to replace the trees they're using to burn these scum" Amora directed to Loki/Odin "as the western borders have such beautiful forests it would be a shame to lose them."

"I will leave that to your capable hands my love" Loki/Odin replied, "It will be your first official duty as Queen."

"I would increase the guard around you and the Lady Amora, father as it can be expected that this malcontent will surely seek reprisal for this loss" Thor expressed his worry plainly, "as he has already made one attempt on your lives. Who is to say he won't make a second when he discovers we've dealt a telling blow to his lackeys."

"A wise decision my son and have extra guards for yourself as well as your life will now be in danger from this traitor as well" Loki/Odin thoughtfully spoke to his brother.

"I will see to it father" Thor saluted his father and turned to leave but Amora bade him wait. She cupped her hands and murmured softly and a charm appeared in her hands.

"Hang this from a bed post and it will protect you, brother, from harmful beasts as this traitor has used poisonous creatures before" she handed Thor the charm. "Sleep peacefully tonight to be ready for the feast tomorrow."

"My thanks, sister, and a peaceful rest for you as well" Thor graciously accepted the charm and exited his father's rooms.

"It seems your 'son' has finally accepted me as your future wife" Amora picked up her wine glass with a smile on her face, "he hasn't called me sister in ages."

"You useless Jotun cow!" the man in the black hooded cloak screamed enraged at the sorceress as he beat her with a club while she cowered on the floor of her dungeon room. "How many men did the Odinson kill? HOW MANY?"

"Ten thousand!" she cried out in pain and fear as she held up her arms to ward off his blows.

"And what of the others?" he bellowed as he struck her twice more.

"I transported them into the cavern, they now hide as bats. The Asgardians don't know of the cave and won't think of looking behind them as they're too busy looking in the fields."

"Well then, perhaps you still are useful to me and can continue your worthless existence" she could see his eyes glaring at her from under his cowl, "as long as you protect the rest of my mercenaries until I'm ready to strike at Odin.


	12. Chapter 12

12

Thor did enjoy a peaceful night's sleep and as he lay in his bed staring at the ceiling he was lost in thought about all that had happened in the last few days. Since some of the brigands were of the same band as those that had attacked Vanaheim, could those men have been hired by this hidden traitor? He would have to talk to father about that, and then see if those imprisoned in the dungeons already had knowledge of this traitor's identity. Mayhap he had hired them to attack Vanaheim as a prelude to attacking Asgard, but, there hadn't been any complete surprise to any of those attacks. So possibly it was after that defeat he hired the witch, or warlock, to disguise his men as tiny rodents to inspire such terror among the people with abject brutality. Also, how could he get to Jotunheim and Niflheim without Heimdall seeing him to catch and bring back the Jotun Black Rock spider and the Niflheim Shadow Viper unless it was by witchcraft?

He most likely had the murdered librarian thrall under his sway as well. Could he have dangled freedom from the collar as the bait to get the man to steal the Vizier's scrolls and murder the Vizier as well? Perhaps looking into this thrall's dealings in the past would be advisable as it might reveal clues as to who was behind all this butchering?

The only thing that proved to be disturbing to the Thunder god was Mangog and how his father seemed to have no knowledge of a creature who claimed to have been imprisoned by his father. As well as the fact that there was absolutely nothing about the beast in the Chronicles of the Kings, not even the briefest of mentions. Why would his father deliberately withhold information? Was it senility or something else?

His man thrall entered his bed chamber and greeting him with news that the Allfather requested his presence at a special breakfast for his sons and their families while he began to bring out his finest livery (to wear for the great feast later that day) and started to shine up the metal parts as Thor climbed out of his bed stating he was going to make for the steam baths. His man thrall stopped what he was doing with apologies and fetched washing clothes and towels for his master. Thor thanked him and left the thrall working on his ceremonial armor and when he entered the hallway he was greeted by Balder as he led blind Hodr and his son Forseti who were also headed for the steam baths.

"Did you sleep well brother?" Balder greeted Thor with a sleepy grin.

"Since I had nothing to distract me from a good night's sleep, yes I did" Thor jested with his older brother whose ears colored slightly which brought a wide grin from Thor.

"It was a worthwhile distraction little brother" Balder recovered nicely, "very worthwhile indeed."

A group of well-armed Einherjar followed the Odinsons to provide protection as per their King's orders as all in the kingdom now knew of Thor's victory over the western raiders.

There were several men and women using the baths this morning as all wished to be in their finest livery and the women were chattering about new hair styles as well as perfumes and jewelry collections as they entered their respective bathing rooms. The rising sun was shining a cascade of dawn's colors through the glass ceiling of the bathing rooms as steam rose up from the heated waters creating miniature rainbows. The Odinsons returned greetings from other nobles who entered the baths or who already enjoying massages while soaking in the hot steaming waters.

Thralls scurried about with towels and massaging oils tending to their charges while others took sleep clothes from bathers to clean and return once the bather was finished and ready to leave the baths. Thor removed his sleep shirt and handed it to an elderly thrall before he stepped down into a rectangular sunken marble bathing pool for an individual. A thrall offered him a bar of soap then did the same to Balder, Hodr and Forseti before going to wait upon another nobleman.

Balder helped Hodr step into another sunken bathing pool then eased himself into the one next to Thor, "Congratulations are in order little brother for this timely victory over these raiders."

"Is it true there were ten thousand raiders slain?" Forseti asked his uncle excitedly as he looked over the edge of his bathing pool.

"Ten thousand?" Thor glanced at Balder, "When I left they had only dug up a thousand of those butchers and they were stripping the armor off to line the roads while burning the bodies."

"We got a message during the night from Hogun that they found at least ten thousand drowned brigands from your attack and they are still searching for more" Balder explained as he washed his neck. "Perhaps now there will be peace in the western borderlands for the first time in four years."

It was a beautiful dawn as Amora woke up to the song of the Treasure bird while it sat on its perch. She smiled happily as today was THE day, the day she would become Queen of Asgard and wife to THE most crafty and cunning scoundrel in all nine realms. She turned over onto her back and with her eyes still heavy from sleep reached over to his side of Odin's bed but her hand felt nothing but the bed sheets. Forcing her eyes open she looked for him and found Loki sitting on the edge of the bed with his back towards her dressed in his sleep shirt.

"You're up early this morning" she grinned as she slowly ran her right forefinger down his back, "don't tell me you're getting pre-wedding jitters as all this was your idea?"

"No" he said with little feeling in his voice as he slowly turned to face her, "but you may change your mind about marrying me if you saw the real me"

Amora gasped as she saw that the flesh of his face was blue with genetic clan scarring upon his face and forehead and his eyes were red.

"I had heard that you were half Jotun after Thor destroyed the Bifrost and you disappeared…" Amora stared hard at him and then she blushed when she realized that she was gawking at him. Reaching up with her right hand she gently touched his face, "Your flesh…it's so cold, so rough."

"If you change your mind and call off the wedding because you…because I am a monster to be shunned…I will understand."

He turned away from her but she refused to release his face and gently turned it to look at her, "This is not your fault Loki, Odin forced your mother to marry Laufey…a marriage that my father was opposed to…you are not the monster here my love, Odin was."

Rising up to sit next to him she took his head in both her hands and kissed him as his arms slowly encircled her waist and he pulled her closer to himself.

The arrival of Loki/Odin and the Lady Amora at the bathing rooms caused a bit of a panic among the thralls who stopped everything they were doing to attend to the King and their future Queen. Amora left Loki/Odin to walk into the women's bathing room with a score of female thralls anxious to attend her as Loki/Odin continued to the men's bathing room with Gungnir in his right hand. A unit of Einherjar accompanied the King while a unit of Valkyries followed after Amora.

A nobleman had vacated the sunken bath on Thor's right and it was being refilled with hot water as Loki/Odin walked up to it and gave his sleep shirt to the thrall that attended him before walking carefully down the stairs of the bathing pool and laying his spear on the floor next to the pool. Another thrall handed him a bar of soap and a washing cloth while the Einherjar that had accompanied their King stepped back to the walls to join the ones that had been assigned to the Odinsons.

"Today will be a day to remember my sons" Loki/Odin spoke with a bit of pride stealing through his voice, "as I honor the warriors who perished as well as your victory over these raiders and I take the Lady Amora as wife and Queen. I will have the chroniclers there as well to preserve this day's events for prosperity."

The presence of the chroniclers had been Amora's idea and it had appealed to Loki's sense of grandeur as he would have Thor's refusal of the throne recorded as well as the honors he would heap upon Thor and the Vizier as well as his marriage to, and installation of Amora as Queen.

Amora had told him that she had been reading through her father's personal scrolls and was having scribes scan them and transcribe them into books; one set of books that would record a history on Asgardian law, another set his commentary on Asgardian law, and the last set was his personal diary about his family, his late wife and Amora. Loki had told her that he would pass a law making the first two books required reading for those who wished to study Asgardian law, or sought office as a counselor to the King, knowing that this tribute would please her greatly.

Loki/Odin saw a look of conflict on Thor's face as he said nothing about the honors he would receive and it struck Loki/Odin odd. What was going on in that dull, thick skull of his brother? Could it be that he was rethinking his abdication of the throne after defeating Malekith? Or, more likely, Thor was going to hold to his earlier decision even though all his moronic friends (and especially the Lady Sif) would have an apoplectic fit over his refusal. Poor little warrior maiden; hero-worshipping, and long desiring the throne as Queen, Thor's Queen, Sif. Oh how she would find all her hopes dashed forever as Thor did not love her and probably never would thanks to Jane Foster. Was he considering what their feelings would be when he refused the throne for a second time?

He was about to probe into his brother's mind with questions to see if his suppositions were right when a shadow crossed over the glass ceiling of the bathing room. Loki/Odin looked up and before he could cry out an alarm an immense white form crashed through the ceiling. Showering the bathing room with broken glass as a giant bull spider-ape from Nornheim landed only a few feet away from the disguised Loki. The creature looked at him with an angry look on its face as it opened its mandible mouth and roared at him while pounding its chest with all four arms before it leaped at him.

An alert Einherjar hurled a spear at the bull which found its mark, and enraged the beast stopped, turned and hurled itself at the warriors who now sprang into action to protect their King. With swords drawn the King's Guard braced for the brute's attack, when there came the sound of more glass shattering as a dozen more bull spider-apes fell down from the roof and they now heard terrified screams of the women.

"Amora!" Loki/Odin cried out in fear as he climbed out the bathing pool and heedless of the fact that he was naked and barefoot he scooped up Gungnir and made for the women's section of the bathing room over the shattered glass that covered the marble floor. Heedless of the beasts he charged into the women's room.

"A sword, a sword, someone hand me a sword" Balder bellowed as the apes began to converge on him, his helpless brother, and his precious son! A warrior with a javelin pulled his sword from its scabbard and tossed it to Balder who caught it by the hilt and braced himself for the creatures attack. He did not have to wait long as four brutes charged him, "Stay in the pool and keep down" he ordered his brother and son as he decapitated the first ape to reach him and chopped an arm off the one behind it.

Screaming in pain and rage the beast hesitated briefly before renewing its attack and that brief moment was enough for Balder to cleave its skull. A warrior cast his spear at the third ape hitting a vital spot which felled it before it reached the Odinson. The fourth spider-ape leapt at Balder roaring in anger and he barely managed to free his sword from the head of the ape he'd killed to face the brute that fell upon him.

"NOOOOO!" Thor screamed as he saw both brother and beast fall into the bathing pool that Balder had been using and the brute thrashed viciously about in the water. He'd been given a sword from another warrior (who had charged after the other apes in order to protect the other nobles there in the bath) and Thor jumped upon the creature's back to attempt to pull it off of his brother. Encircling his arm around its neck he pulled with all his might and managed to raise the brute's head out of the water while its arms and legs flailed about. That's when he saw blood mingling with the bath water and with a bellow of rage he buried the sword in the ape's side. The creature stopped its thrashing and went limp as Thor saw a gasping Balder rise up from the water and scramble out of the pool coughing and gagging on bloody water.

"You're lucky these brutes are thick skinned little brother or you would have been skewered on my sword" Balder coughed up some more water, "for it is buried in its heart."

The Einherjar had killed the last of the spider-apes and Balder looking about called out for his son and twin brother. Forseti ran to his father crying from fear and Hodr called out that he was well. That's when the Odinsons heard screaming coming from the women's bathing room and Balder looked around for his father.

"Father, where is father?" a look of panic crossed his face when he realized that Odin wasn't with them. "The women…Amora!" and with that Balder made all haste for the women's bathing room with Thor right behind him.

A company of Einherjar and Valkyries had rushed into the bathing room being alerted by a handful of screaming women fleeing from the giant ape creatures and they quickly move to protect not only their King, but future Queen as well.

When Loki/Odin rushed into the women's bathing room he quickly spotted Amora who, with sword in hand, was holding off a giant bull spider-ape. Still dressed in her sleep gown Amora demonstrated remarkable skill with the blade and despite his terror of possibly losing her he felt pride in his heart also.

"Amora," Loki/Odin screamed at her "get down!"

Lowering Gungnir, Loki/Odin took aim at the beast and when The Enchantress fell to the floor, a golden bolt from the King's spear blasted the beast into atoms.

There had been nearly a dozen spider-apes in the bathing room, but the fast acting Einherjar and Valkyries dealt with them, and still in readiness to defend the bathers, they kept wary eyes on the glass ceiling in case more should fall through to attack.

"My dear, are you all right?" Loki/Odin asked breathlessly as he approached her.

"Yes, I am but…"

"Father, Amora are you both all right?" Balder stopped to catch his breath with Thor right behind him. Thor caught the look on Amora's face when she turned to face them and her eyes traveled down their forms and that's when he remembered that…

"Balder!" called out the embarrassed and mildly peeved voice of Nanna, wrapped in a large bathing towel, as she stood nearby with a bloody sword in her hand "you're naked!"

Both Thor and Balder developed red faces as they came to the realization that, indeed they were both nude, as well as their father. "Have no fear" Amora said with a hint of laughter in her voice as with a wave of her right hand, that glowed with a greenish light, caused bed shirts to appear upon Loki/Odin and both Odinsons "see, propriety and dignity restored."

"Thank you little sister" a slightly relieved Balder spoke up as he made to go to Nanna's side but then cried out with pain with his first footstep. Looking down he saw that there was blood coming from his feet and he realized that he'd stepped on broken glass.

With the danger from the apes over both Loki/Odin and Thor checked their feet as well and discovered that they too were bleeding from glass embedded in their feet. Loki/Odin's concern for Amora's safety and the Odinsons' concern for their father's well-being had put aside any minor pain they may have felt and had paid it no heed.

"Guards" Amora called out "take your King and Princes' to the Healing Room and help those who are bare foot to the exits or to the Healing Room, then clean up this glass."

Taking a look around the bathing room she sighed and then also ordered them to attend to the dead and remove the carcasses of the beasts. Six Einherjar threaded their spears through their shields to use as a seat as they then carried out their King and his two sons to head to the Healing Room.

Calling two Einherjar to her she ordered them to take her and the Lady Nanna to the Healing room and picking both women up in their arms they obeyed their future Queen as their booted feet crunched the broken glass that covered the floor.

"Damn them to Hel" the black cowled man roared in anger as he watched the scene in the bathing rooms through the smoke that Angurbodi conjured up as the King, two of his sons and the Einherjar dispatched all the spider-apes the Jotun witch had sent to kill them all. With fists clenched he raged at this bad turn of luck as the Jotun witch kept her distance from him. Bellowing his disgust he left the hidden chamber and Angurbodi breathed a sigh of relief as she half expected another beating from the bastard.

She turned her attention back to the pillar of smoke to spy on Odin and the Asgardian witch as they left the Healing Room with a company of Einherjar for protection. Odin had the guards thoroughly check his quarters for poisonous beasts and when they found nothing they exited the King's rooms to stand guard just outside. Catching a small spider Angurbodi quickly returned to the vision in the smoky column and with a gentle gust of her breath she blew the spider into the smoke and transported it into the Asgardian King's room and muttering a spell she was able to see through the tiny arachnid's multiple eyes. As was his habit Odin muttered a spell of concealment and Angurbodi saw a green glow envelope Odin's body and she watched it change into the long dead Odinson Loki.

So Loki lives and Odin, if he wasn't dead, must be down in the dungeons. With a smirk of satisfaction on her face the Jotun witch realized now why she hadn't been able to break through his spells of concealment. The half Asgardian bastardized son of Laufey was clever and strong in his magic, magic learned from the Nornheim Queen, but not clever enough to sense he was being spied upon as she watched him drink a toast of good fortune with his soon-to-be Queen. With a wave of her hand she made the image disappear in the smoke and laughed quietly to herself as she was going to keep this new development to herself. Perhaps someday, Loki Laufeyson would prove to be very useful to her, yes very useful.

Loki changed back into Odin-form when he heard Thor and Balder's voice at his antechamber doors and granted them entrance. Both of his 'sons' had dressed in swede shirts and leather pants before coming to their father's chambers. Thor stated he had come to explain his theory about the brigands in the dungeons possibly coming from the same cohort that perished in the western valleys and that the interrogators should question some of them to see if his assumption was correct.

"Yes my son, this would seem to be the wisest thing to do, but I think it would be better if they were turned over to Karnilla instead" Loki/Odin said after a brief period of thought "as she is far more adept at getting information than even our interrogators."

Turning to Amora Loki/Odin requested that she contact Karnilla and inform the Norn Queen of what had just transpired. This Amora did by closing her eyes and concentrating while mumbling a spell. A small column of smoke appeared in front of her and as it grew it began to take shape and form until the savage Queen of Nornheim stood before them. Karnilla's form was draped in smoke as she stood in front of her ivory throne, as proud as ever, dressed in a black gown whose front was attached to a golden chain with large, thick links draped upon her neck.

It split in two halves, covering her breasts and joined to another golden braided chain at her waist to flow like black water about her form.

"Why does the King of Asgard summon Karnilla?" She spoke with an angered tone in her voice as she looked about the bed chamber of Odin spying the Thunder god and when she saw Balder her expression lightened somewhat.

"An attempt was made to assassinate the royal family O Queen" Loki/Odin answered back with respect, "with at least a dozen bull spider-apes just this morn."

"Hum-mm, your traitor did not waste time trying to get back at you for the loss of so many of his men" Karnilla threaded her fingers together, "And it seems he now knows of my involvement." Balthar and another Norn guard now came into the image dragging the giant black striped carcass of an Asgardian mountain beast. The cat-like creature had two rows of pointed horns starting from its eyebrows to the back of its head and long dagger-like upper fangs that protruded a centimeter past its bottom jaw. Wickedly sharp curved claws extended from its four forelegs as it was dumped at Karnilla's feet for all to see. "This climbed through one of my bed chamber windows and attempted to devour me. Which, as you can see, it failed to do as my knife was faster than it and found its heart before it could devour mine."

"There are, in our dungeons brigands from Vanaheim, who bear the same amour and tattoo markings of those I slew in our western border valleys" Thor spoke up as he stared in amazement at the beast as it was larger than any he'd ever seen.

"I will have half a dozen brigands selected, O Karnilla, for you to integrate along with our own interrogators," Loki/Odin offered "as they may have been hired by this traitor before he obtained a sorcerer to disguise his marauders."

"It won't be necessary to disturb your interrogators as I can easily obtain the information we both desire" Karnilla spoke plainly to Loki/Odin as she walked through the smoke to stand in Loki/Odin's bed chambers. "Merely have someone guide me to your dungeons and show me these mercenaries. I can assure you it will not take much time to get the information we seek."

"Very well O Queen" Loki/ Odin looked at Thor and continued. "My son will escort you and allow you to work undisturbed."

With a bow of her head, Karnilla followed Thor out of the King's chambers as they, with plenty of dropped and gaping jaws from men and women of the Court, as well as Einherjar, walked to the dungeons.

Thor stopped in front of a cell that held six men taken captive from the battle on Vanaheim and with a wave of her hand the force field that held the brigands' prisoner opened up a gap large enough to allow Karnilla, who walked up invisible stairs to reach the platform to go through it, before closing it behind her. Thor was about to protest when she reached out her hand, fingers extended and all six cutthroats rose up in the air their arms and legs flailing about in helplessness.

"Now I am going to ask you some questions" the Queen of Nornheim stated nonchalantly as she stood before the floating men, "and I expect you to tell me the truth or…"

The raider to her far left seemed to burst into flame and he screamed in terror and pain before he floated to the cell floor as so much ash. The eyes of the surviving brigands grew wide with fear as Thor's jaw dropped and his eyes nearly flew from his head at this display of power from the Norn Queen. She walked up to the man who had been floating next to the unfortunate mercenary and it seemed to Thor that he couldn't tell Karnilla enough, but no matter what she threatened them with, none of them could tell her the identity of their employer, only that he was an Asgardian noble man who lived in the western borderlands of Asgard. They never at any time saw his face, as he was always cloaked in a black traveler's cloak which also muffled his voice somewhat as well, and they did not know where he lived as they always met in caves or clearings in thick groves in the forests of Vanaheim.

Turning from the cutthroats Karnilla waved her hand in front of her and the gap in the force field reappeared for her to walk through and down the invisible stairs as the marauders fell to the floor of their cell as the force field closed behind her. "How very disappointing "The Norn Queen spoke dispassionately as she glanced at Thor, "we are only slightly closer to learning this malcontent's name."

"Then we can only hope that he will make a serious blunder which will give us his identity" Thor answered back as he escorted Karnilla out of the dungeons and back to his father's chambers.

When the two of them entered Loki/Odin's chambers they relayed what the raiders had told them and this did not please Loki, but it did confirm his theory that this traitor was from the western borderlands.

"My warriors shall continue to keep watch in the three valleys" Karnilla spoke with regal determination "as sooner or later either, he or his cutthroats, will make a mistake and when he does, he will find Karnilla at his heels." With a flourish Karnilla turned into a pillar of smoke which then slowly dissipated to reveal that she had left to return to Nornheim.

"Have Heimdall continue to watch all the Lords with lands in the western borders" Loki/Odin spoke up after some contemplation "as for us, at the moment, let us enjoy our breakfast."

Four thralls entered the antechamber with trays of food for the morning feast with Odin's sons and their families as Balder, his wife Nanna, son Forseti and blind Hodr entered first. All gathered about the long table waiting for the Allfather to take his place at the tables head. Loki/Odin led Amora to the chair at his right then sat down with a nod for all gathered to sit as thralls served their masters and mistresses.

When the breakfast was finished Loki/Odin spoke saying all should prepare for the celebratory feast and requested Balder and Tyr to increase the guard to protect themselves and the people who would be attending.

"Then I shall have to leave you my love to prepare in my chambers" Amora smiled when she caught the slight look of disappointment on Loki/Odin's face "as its bad luck to see the bridal gown before the wedding."

When she exited Loki/Odin's rooms she was met by a unit of Einherjar who escorted her to her rooms and she hurried her steps as there was something that she had to make certain of before Loki could get to the dungeons.

The old man just stared at the bread and water the dungeon guard had brought him earlier and he wondered if he actually should use the powder that Amora had given him. Today was the day of "his" wedding to the Lady Amora and his usefulness to his adopted son was over. A movement to his left caught his one remaining eye and he saw a glowing green light that spiraled upwards like smoke from an enchanted fire and the form of Amora appeared before him. At her feet was the dead body of one of the brigands from Vanaheim and with a wave of her right hand it transformed into him.

"Take the powder with your water" she spoke urgently to him "as the guard will be here any moment to take away the dishes and Loki will be here soon to kill you, so if you want to live do as I say."

"You take a great risk in coming here now" Odin answered back weakly "the guard will wonder why and how you come to be here."

"I would be at risk if the fool could see me and this carcass, but I am hidden by a spell of concealment so all he will see is you."

Odin took out the small leather pouch from the fold of his ragged shirt and undoing the binding cord he poured the powder into his water and then drank it. He gagged briefly and it was proving hard for him to breathe as he collapsed upon his right side and seemed to breathe his last.

The Einherjar guard entered the cell and picked up the plate of uneaten bread and the dropped metal cup that had spilled what little water that was in it. Reaching over to touch the old vagabond's throat he straightened up and with a sigh walked out of the cell as he was now going to have to lug the old carcass to the furnaces to dispose of it before it would begin to stink.

When the guard was out of sight Amora began to mumble and chant an incantation and the brigand's body replaced that of Odin's unconscious form as she and Odin's unconscious form were transported to another holding cell on anther floor in the lower levels of the prison. Pulling a small vial from her sleeve she poured it into Odin's mouth and she hoped that he wasn't so weak that the antidote would fail to restore him to consciousness. She was rewarded by Odin coughing and gagging as he woke up from his drug induced stupor. With a flourish she raised her arms up over her head and she disappeared as Odin sat up to watch her fade away with a surprised look upon his face as she actually had been true to her word.

Loki/Odin watched as two Einherjar guards slid the old tramp's body into the furnace and closed the furnace door. Neither guard dared to ask why the Allfather would concern himself with an old vagabond's death, nor did they think it worth incurring his wrath as he didn't look too happy that the old man was dead. Loki/Odin turned about and stalked out of the prison fuming to himself as he had wanted to torment the old bastard one last time before draining his life–force completely. It seemed that Odin had robbed him of one more thing, but no matter, as Loki was now the most powerful man in all of Asgard and there was no one to deny to him what was rightfully his. What his beloved mother had given to him. The throne, all of Asgard, was now his and his alone…no not alone, his and Amora's and the son she must have within her womb…yes, all of it was theirs.

Servants carrying platters of food scurried along the long tables for the noblemen and women, freemen and their wives, as well as Einherjar guards who were entering the feasting hall buzzing with conversations and laughter. They all waited anxiously for the appearance of the Allfather and all the Odinsons, especially Thor as rumors flew fast and high that once again Odin would offer the throne to his only son by their late Queen and today would be his coronation. Others gossiped that Odin was going to take The Enchantress, the Lady Amora as wife, since he'd already taken her as mistress.

There came the blaring sound of Einherjar blowing curled, gold covered ram's horns to announce the entrance of the King. Loki/Odin entered the feasting hall wearing ceremonial armor forged from the gold Balder and Thor brought back from the western valleys. With purposeful strides Loki/Odin walked to his gold plated chair at the head of the long table where he and his 'sons' would sit.

The table was covered with a long and wide linen cloth with knot-work dragons embroidered with gold cut into fine threads running along the hem and one large, golden, long twisted pair of dragons running down the middle of the table cloth. Thralls had placed gold cups and gold platters at each chair and with gold pitchers they filled each drinking cup with blood red wine. The assembled courtiers and freeborn gentry found their places at the other long tables to stand next to their chairs as the Allfather came to stand in front of his own chair. The assembled Odinsons, the sons of the former Queen, the Lady Bertha, stood at the chairs to their father's left according to their order of birth; Tyr and Uller, Bragi and the empty chair next to him would have been for Skjoidr who died in battle with the Frost Giants, Balder (who would escort the Lady Amora to the great feasting table and her marriage to his father) and Hodr, and Hermodr, the last two chairs were also empty as they would have been for Freyr (who lived in hosterage in Vanaheim as the captain of the King's body guard) and his late sister Freya.

Thor was directed to the second chair to his father's right next to the chair which was for the Lady Amora. There erupted a loud wave of cheering and clapping as Thor stood next to his seat and he acknowledged it with a smile and nod of his head.

Thor's friends and the Lady Sif, now recovered from her injuries, stood by him with Sif right next to him. Each of them had smiles of anticipation upon their faces as they were all assured that today would be the day that Thor would take his rightful place as the next King of Asgard, despite the fact that Odin seemed determined to marry the Lady Amora and make her Queen.

"Nervous little sister?" Balder spoke up with just the hint of a smile on his face as he and the Lady Amora stood in the west entrance to the great hall waiting with the new High Councilor for their cue to enter.

"That obvious is it?" she answered back with a small laugh which did nothing to hide the fact that, yes, she was nervous for the first time after many a wedding to various lords and soldiers during her lifetime.

"It wouldn't be normal if you weren't as today you will become our Queen" Balder gently patted her hand to assure her "and long many you reign."

With a nod of Loki/Odin's head Tyr began to slowly read the names of the fallen Einherjar that died on N'as-Keroth and when he spoke the last name Loki/Odin reached down to the table to pick up his cup of wine, "To the heroic dead." He raised the cup in salute and drank while from the corner of his one seeing eye he saw the scribes busy recording the names of the dead as well as his toast. Inwardly Loki was pleased for his schemes seemed to be falling into place exactly as he had imagined that they would. The assembled host before him also raised their glasses and gave salute to the fallen warriors.

Turning to Thor, Loki/Odin raised his glass to his older brother, "To my son, whom I now proclaim to be Lord Protector of Asgard and guardian of all nine realms, I now ask again, are you prepared to take up the throne, your birthright?"

A hush fell upon the assembly and Loki/Odin saw a huge grin erupt on Sif's face as well as on the faces of the three cretins as all eyes were now on the Thunder god. Who remained silent and his eyes seemed to retreat inwards in thought unlike his behavior some eight years past where he was all boastful noise and self-centered. The scribes had ceased their writing to gaze at the heir-apparent waiting for his answer.

Thor took a deep breath and then answered, "I will defend my homeland with my last breath, my last drop of blood and I hope to be worthy of the trust you have bestowed on me Father…" the Odinson paused, sighed then with a resolute expression on his face he continued "but I am not worthy of the throne…"

"NO!" Sif cried out in shock and dismay as she could not believe what she had just heard and she grabbed his left arm forcing him to face her. "You are the rightful heir to the throne…"

The Warriors Three stood dumbfounded as Thor tore his arm out of Sif's grasp, "I could not save my mother, and my brother died needlessly, because I was fool enough to think I could destroy something that was indestructible."

"With this you leave me without an heir" Loki/Odin spoke with pretend sorrow as he quietly stared at Thor "and leave me no other choice."

The echo of Gungnir slamming into the floor brought silence and Loki/Odin released it to extend his right hand to the west entrance. "I commanded the Lady Amora and the Second Highest Councilor to be brought forth."

"Thor, what are you doing?" Sif sputtered in unbelief as her years of dreaming of seeing him sit the Golden Throne vaporized.

"What I know to be right in my heart Sif for I am no King, I never was."

All eyes now turned to the west side of the celebration hall as Balder led the Lady Amora through the doorway as the two of them followed the High Councilor to the gasps of the stunned crowd. That Thor should throw away his birthright, that the Allfather would seek to marry again and to The Enchantress of all people, was lunacy to the warrior maiden.

"Thor, you must stop this she has the Allfather under a spell…"

"Be silent Sif" Thor growled at her, "Father isn't enchanted as if anyone could possess the power to warp his mind. Father has a right to be happy and if he has found happiness with Amora, as I have with Jane, then so be it."

Sif stared at him with open mouthed confusion as he couldn't mean what she just heard him say.

Balder led Amora up to Loki/Odin and gently transferred her hand from on top of his own to his father's and made for his seat as the newly appointed High Councilor took his place behind the Allfather.

"By the power invested in me by the crown I have come to join together this man and this woman in the life-bond of marriage" with all solemnity the High Councilor spoke as a thrall held open a book of law and he began to read the vows of matrimony.

"Do you my King swear to bind yourself to this woman of your own free will to become her husband?"

"I do so freely swear" Loki/Odin replied with just a hint of a smile upon his face, "to bind myself to the Lady Amora forever."

"Do you my Lady swear to bind yourself to this man of your own free will to become his wife?"

Sif wanted to scream with all her strength as this could not be happening and Thor was just standing there allowing it to happen.

"I do so freely swear to bind myself to Odin, my King, forever."

From the east entrance to the great hall old Ake and young Magnus appeared dressed in fine white linen tunics. The older thrall held a scarlet pillow that bore two golden rings of fine knot-work dragons with ruby eyes as well as a gold diadem of knot-work dragons and young Magnus carried a challis filled with wine. Both thralls came to a stop as they reached the High Councilor.

"Freely take the ring my Liege and place it upon the finger of the Lady Amora and repeat this vow…"

Loki/Odin picked up the smaller of the two rings and slid it over the ring finger of her left hand.

"With this ring I am bound to you forever."

"With this ring I am bound to you forever" Loki/Odin repeated.

"Freely take the ring my Lady and place it upon the finger of our King and repeat this vow 'With this ring I am bound to you forever."

Her hand trembled slightly but she took the larger ring and placed it upon Loki/Odin's left ring finger without dropping it "With this ring I am bound to you forever."

"With all the power invested in me by the King, I now pronounce you Husband and Wife" the newly appointed High Councilor said with a smile. "You may now kiss your bride my Liege."

Gently with both his hands Loki/Odin pulled the delicate vail over the emerald head piece and taking a hold of her head with both hands leaned forward and kissed her.

Balder reached down to pick up his gold cup and when his father and the Lady Amora parted lips and raising it up cried out "Long live the King, long live the Queen!"

Thor reached for his cup but Sif stopped him, "This is an obscenity! Thor you must put a stop to this…"

With a growl Thor glared at her "Be silent, father has made his choice and I have made mine."

Raising his gold cup up Thor joined in with Balder in wishing his father and new Queen long life as Sif turned and stalked out of the feast room burning with rage and humiliation as this was not right, not right at all. Sorcery was at work here and she would find out how Amora wormed her way into the Allfather's heart, and bed, and expose the filthy whore.

Soon all in the room, save for the Warriors Three who were stilled stunned by Thor's refusal of the throne, were holding up their cups and toasting long life to both their Lieges and Loki/Odin smiled back at them as he let them continue to shout their praises to him and Amora, praises long over-due to him. Reaching for Gungnir he picked it up and slammed it down on the floor and the thud reverberated throughout the room silencing the people.

"My Lady Amora" Loki/Odin spoke as the crowd grew silent "do you swear to protect the realm with all the might, wit, and cunning you possess?"

"I do swear before all assembled."

"Do you swear to protect all the realms to your last breath?" Loki/Odin continued.

"I do so swear before all assembled."

"Do you swear to cast aside all selfish ambition, vainglory and rule with justice and mercy?"

"I do so swear before all assembled and to honor the memory of my late father."

Reaching for the gold braided diadem Loki/Odin placed it over Amora's head and emerald head piece "In the name of my father and his father before him I now proclaim you…Queen of Asgard" reaching for the challis that Magnus held he took a sip from it and then handed it to Amora. "Drink now and stand by my side as we two rule the mightiest realm of them all."

Amora took the challis from Loki/Odin and drank before handing it back to Loki/Odin who passed it back to Magnus and taking her hand he turned her to face the crowd, "Behold Asgard, your Queen!"

It was Balder who led the cheering that seemed to slowly grow throughout the crowd till all were chanting "Long live the King, long live the Queen!"

Loki/Odin let it go for what seemed a might long time to Amora then he took up Gungnir and slamming its point onto the floor to silence the crowd before taking his place at the head of the great table with her as he nodded his head to his 'sons' to allow them and the crowd assembled to take their seats and begin to feast.

From the time that Amora learned of her father's scrolls and had read through some of them she'd employed scribes to transcribe them to books. They were still working at it as there was so many thousands of hand written scrolls to scan and then record them for publishing that they didn't have the half of them done. One scribe, a nearly bald, thin man with a hawkish nose was scanning a scroll from the early days of Odin's reign when he stopped in amazement and began to actually read it. Amazement turned to fear, fear turned to panic as he dropped his scanner and dashed out of the late High Councilor's private chambers with the scroll in his hand.

All seemed to be peaceful enough with the cosmos this night as Heimdall scanned the heavens for any potential threat to the realm either from outside Asgard, or from inside it, while the kingdom celebrated the marriage of the Allfather to the Lady Amora and her coronation as Queen. Turning his gaze to Earth he saw Jane Foster giving a lecture on the convergence and the gate-keeper thought she looked slightly tired from all the traveling she did to speak to other learned mortals or to students. He saw Erik Selvig working on research at the newly constructed Avenger's base of operations. Thor's compatriots were either enjoying their new found freedom or training for the next crisis that would require their stopping the evil forces that would impugn their will on the peoples of Midgard.

Heimdall cast his eyes upon the lifeless world where Thor had defeated the beast and scanned it for any sign of the monster. All he saw was an immense ocean of incredible depth and he could see that the newly formed ocean floor was completely covered with rubble. Islands had formed and unstable shelves of diverse depths, where soil was still settling into cracks and crevices, to form solid masses of rock. A slight tremor shook the land next to the ocean then the land was still, but only for a moment as another tremor manifested.

The scribe came upon the eastern entrance to the feasting hall and stopped to catch his breath and an Einherjar strode up to him to inquire as to why he was there and what did he have in his hands?

"I must speak to the Lady Amora" he gasped in pain from unaccustomed exertion "it is vital that I show her what is written in this scroll of her father's."

"Can you not see that our new Queen celebrates both her marriage to the King and her coronation? What makes you think that this is so important that you could disturb her from her revels?"

"You fool! This concerns…"

There came a booming crash of the heavy gold overlaid doors at the western entrance which cause many to soil their clothes with either food or wine as an Einherjar came flying through them to run to the King's table.

"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" Loki/Odin roared with rage at the guard who nearly fell over from fear of his angry Liege and his inability to breathe.

"Heimdall has…has sent me" the younger warrior finally gasped. "Mangog…the beast…it lives and is free…it heads for Asgard and with be here within the hour!"

Mangog, Thor's jaw dropped in shock, how could the creature have survived being frozen and buried alive by the entire half of a planet. He looked at his father who sat in his chair stunned by this news until the people assembled began to panic and standing up Odin slammed Gungnir's point into the floor which brought some composure to the assembled Asgardians.

"My sons, arm yourselves and every able-bodied man and boy, we go to meet this brute and deal with it once and for all" Loki/Odin turned to speak to Amora, to order her to evacuate Asgard proper but she was not at his side. He caught a glimpse of her running away with a scribe and he was about to call after her but she exited the feasting hall holding what seemed to be a scroll. What, was she deserting him? What could make her abandon him, unless she cared nothing for him at all and was only concerned with her own survival? Only Balder seemed to be in control as he shouted orders for all men to head to the armory and to follow him as he left to obey his father's command.

Confusion ruled in the feasting hall as women panicked catching ahold of children and each other as the Allfather shouted at them to head for the long boats and leave Asgard as quickly as possible. Balder caught a hold of Nanna and shouted over the din, "Lead the women and children to the long boats and get out of Asgard with all haste." He kissed her then releasing her he dashed for the armory.

"Women of Asgard, to me" Nanna shouted and began to lead them out of the feasting room to where the great long boats were tethered.

Amora had been greatly peeved that her moment of glory was being interrupted by lowly scribe until he showed her the entry in her father's journal and then the Einherjar breaking in to inform Loki/Odin about the beast. Now she couldn't run fast enough to her father's quarters as she had to make sure that all his scrolls would be safe as they were among the few things that her father had that she felt deserved to be kept safe, kept for her remembrance, kept for future generations of her children so that they would be proud that they were his descendants.

When she entered the Vizier's chambers Amora ordered her father's entire collection of scrolls to be collected as fast as they could for removal to safety. They began to gather all of them up but then realized they didn't have enough pouches to put them in and Amora commanded them to take the blankets off her father's bed and place the scroll upon them.

"Hurry you fools" Amora screamed at hem as they yanked the covers off the bed threw them on the floor and piled the scrolls on them. Amazingly they managed to get all the scrolls wrapped up in the blankets and sheets and The Enchantress had them stand around the piles as she began to chant and from her hands a green glowing smoke began to rise and it floated towards the scribes and scrolls till they were completely encompassed by it. When she stopped chanting the smoke began to dissipate and the scribes and the scrolls were gone with only a wisp of smoke curling up from the floor where they had stood. Still holding the scroll the scribe had given her, she sprinted to her father's wardrobe and spying a long rectangular chest she snatched it from the top shelf, turning she ran from the room, she had to find Loki and show him the entry on the scroll.

The company of Einherjar at the Bifrost portal stood in preparation for the monsters arrival as Heimdall said it would land there first as more men joined them. Heimdall held his sword in readiness though he didn't think it would have much effect on the creature, but, they would make a stand even if it would be their last.

Confusion was king as people scurried everywhere; soldiers to the gates of Asgard, women and children to the long boats, as Loki/Odin mounted Sleipnir and rode to the head of the assembled warriors to lead them into battle. He had just seen the dreams of childhood fulfilled and he wasn't going to lose it all because of some beast with a grudge against Odin. With the entire corps of Einherjar behind him Loki/Odin rode out of the palace grounds for the main gate of the Bifrost.

He had Uller split his archers into three groups; one for the main gates of the city, the second midway into the city along the main roads leading out of Asgard, and the final third at the palace itself as lines of defense should the beast break through the united front that Loki/Odin would mount against the beast.

"Brace yourself!" Heimdall bellowed as they could now see the beast approaching and all stood their ground as it landed in their midst.

When Mangog landed he went through the dome of the Bifrost portal and with a snarl charged at Heimdall and his warriors. Swinging his massive fists the brute sent brave Einherjar flying in all directions and the gatekeeper himself bounced off a far wall as if he were nothing more than a child's cloth doll. Slowly as he picked himself up from the floor Heimdall took up his sword that lay on the floor not far from him and calling out to what Einherjar that were left standing raced after the monster as it strode down the rainbow bridge towards the city proper.

Uller's archers stationed upon the outer wall of the city rained arrows down at the creature but it did no good as they didn't impede Mangog's advancement. When he reached the city's outer gates he pounded on them and they shivered and cracked until they exploded from his battering fists.

"At last" Mangog bellowed, "Odin!"

Loki/Odin sat tall and straight upon Sleipnir with countless legions of Einherjar both afoot and mounted behind him. With Gungnir in his right hand and his sons mounted and alongside him Loki/Odin let loose his own bellow and charged the monster as all of Asgard followed him.

Letting lose a blast from Gungnir he was rewarded by hearing the creature scream as it braced itself from his blast. Raising his fists high above his head, Mangog roared in rage and slammed them down on the bridge and the warriors of Asgard and their horses were all knocked off their feet and several fell off the bridge to sink below the fast flowing waters that cascaded over the edge of the realm.

Loki/Odin scrambled to his feet as Sleipnir raced back to the stables with the other horses that were driven to fear and confusion by being separated from their masters. Once again Loki/Odin blasted the brute with the King's spear and scowled that it had no effect. From behind him he heard the metallic whine of Mjolnir as it flew past him to bounce off the brute's head.

"My son, we strike together" Loki/Odin shouted back as the hammer returned to Thor's hand and he lowered Gungnir to take aim at Mangog. Twin blasts of golden energy and lightning struck the attacking fiend and it seemed to slow it down, but not stop its advance. Arrows and spears showered down upon the demonic form of Mangog but still he advanced through the warriors of Asgard as if they were naught but grass.

"Odin" the creature snarled as he reached out a clawed hand to snatch Loki/Odin from the bridge, "you still live. Good, you shall live long enough to see me take my revenge as I draw the Odinsword from its sheath and destroy all you hold dear." Again Mangog struck the bridge with his massive fists and he destroyed a section of the bridge which exploded sending Asgardians flying everywhere. With a roar the monster leapt into the air and over the blast to land behind this first defensive line and heading to the other side of the second bridge gate it preceded to wade through the soldiers tossing them like refuse in his wake.

Thor was fortunate that he landed on the bridge and he rose up and roared in fear and anger as he watched the fiend carry his father away. Balder was trying to hold on to Tyr who had fallen over the side of the Bifrost and called out for help. The Thunder god went to his brother's aid and helped to haul his oldest half-brother back upon the bridge.

It seemed to Thor that the creature was slowly, deliberately taking its time wading through the forces of Asgard as if it was enjoying the carnage it was causing. He watched as brave men threw themselves at the beast to attempt to rescue their King, wielding sword, mace, axe, spear and javelin as small gunships fired upon it to no effect.

"We must make for the palace" Balder called out in terror as Tyr rose to his feet, "Should this brute pull the Odinsword from its resting place then all is lost."

Thor saw Tyr's face turn ashen with terror and he didn't understand, "Odinsword? What are you speaking of?"

"Father created it nearly four millennia ago as the ultimate deterrent to alien conquest" Tyr gasped as he tried to catch his breath.

"We must stop this monster as the Odinsword will destroy, not just the Realm Eternal but the entire cosmos" Balder looked at Thor in terror, "We must get to the Golden Throne room and defend it at all costs."

"Get the attention of a gunship" Balder told Tyr "and have it ferry as many men to the palace as possible"

Grasping Thor's wrist while the younger Odinson twirled his hammer, and who took hold of Balder's wrist, Mjolnir hurtled the two of them towards the palace.

As she stood on a palace balcony that faced towards the Bifrost Amora looked in horror as the fiend decimated the warriors of Asgard and then captured Loki/Odin in its clawed hand. She still held in her hand the scroll that the scribe had given her at the feast as she watched the monster approach the palace, and the long, rectangular gold covered chest in her arms. If what her father had written was true, there was only one way and only one person who could save them now even if it meant losing Loki's love. Turning away she ran as fast as she could and hoped she would have the time to do what was necessary.

The monster plowed through the Einherjar as if it was taking a leisurely stroll through a grassy field as it clutched him in its fist. Loki/Odin strained to free his right arm, which still held Gungnir, so he could blast it and free himself but he was held too tightly and the brute took great pleasure in squeezing him tighter. The gun towers had ceased to fire upon the beast when they were told it had captured the Allfather and the gunnery ships now just helplessly flew by not wishing to accidently strike him. Loki/Odin saw Thor and Balder fly towards the palace overhead and he surmised that the two Odinsons were going to make a last stand at the palace with however many Einherjar were left standing.

Thor landed at the palace gates and Balder straightway took charge in ordering and encouraging the warriors to make their stand for the King and Asgard as well as their families. With Thor at his right Balder drew his sword as they watched Mangog approach the palace royal. With a fowl smirk upon his monstrous face Mangog roared and leapt over the Odinsons to grasp the outer wall of the palace and begin to climb.

"No!" Balder screamed. "The fiend heads for the Golden Throne Room and The Odinsword, men of Asgard, to me!" Balder and Thor turned and hurried to the Golden Throne Room with the warriors of Asgard at their heels. Thor hoped in his heart that they would reach this "Odinsword" before Mangog did as he ran with all speed at his brother's side but then he reasoned that on foot they never would. He stopped running and began to twirl Mjolnir until he gained enough speed and then released his war hammer which went through the ceiling and continued on until it reached the Golden throne Room and taking a step to his right reached his right hand up to summon it back. Crashing back through the floor, making the holes in the ceilings larger, Mjolnir returned to its master's hand.

"What are you doing?" Balder yelled at Thor as he dodged rubble falling from the ceiling as he and all the warriors stopped and stared at his younger brother incredulously.

"Taking the fast lane as Jane would say" as Thor began to whirl Miolnir over his head, creating a whirlwind that sucked all of them up the holes in the ceilings.

They landed on the floor of the Golden Throne Room and they heard and felt the tremors of the monster climbing the outer palace walls as they braced themselves for the monster's attack.

"Where did father hide this "Odinsword" Balder?"

"What, you mean to tell me that father never once told you about it?" Balder stared at him in unbelief then grabbing Thor's right shoulder he spun him around and made him face the throne. "Now tell me what you see little brother?"

"Father's throne" Thor said back with some confusion.

Balder unsheathed his own sword and holding it hilt up he held it in front of Thor, "Father had this made for me, as at one time, I was the heir-apparent to the throne."

He then pushed Thor over by one step, "Do you see it NOW little brother?"

Still confused Thor looked back at Balder's sword and shrugged. It had a flat hilt and an upswept cross guard that…that…that resembled the upswept; gold, reversed arch attached to the back of the throne and the hilt of his sword was decorated exactly like the pillar directly behind the throne.

"Yes, I do" Thor stared at the colossal cross guard and hilt, "now."

"The beast cannot join the cross guard to the hilt" Balder explained as the heard Mangog roar and felt the tremors of its ascent of the palace side and they knew it was close. "The sword will rise from the floor and if it is pulled from its scabbard it will mean the utter destruction of all existence."

"Why would father create such a thing?" Thor enquired as all present prepared to face the brute in defense of the Throne Room.

"Stop and think about it little brother, would YOU attack a people who had a weapon that could destroy, not only them as well as you, but the whole of reality?" Balder gripped his sword in readiness as the tremors grew worse.

The engines of a long ship could be heard to their left as Sif, the Warriors Three and two companies of Einherjar disembarked onto a balcony and hurried to their Princes.

"My friends, I am glad to see you" Thor welcomed them.

"If this is to be our last battle" Hogun grasped Thor's arm, "then we should die together."

There came a deafening roar and Mangog climbed unto the main balcony to The Golden Throne with Loki/Odin still in his cruel grasp, "Finally, after all these ages, my revenge against you will be complete you maggot."

Mjolnir smashed into the monster's face and Loki/Odin screamed angrily "I will not allow you to destroy MY ASGARD!"

Mangog only laughed as he leapt into the amassed warriors and using Loki/Odin as a club slowly plowed a path towards the throne. Einherjar archers laid down their bows and arrows to take up their swords to attack the brute as they feared they might accidently hit the Allfather as they charged the beast yelling at the top of their lungs. Thor smashed his hammer into the floor in front of Mangog and the monster's left foot fell into the resulting hole. Leaping up the Thunder god struck the creature in the face before Mangog's fist sent him flying a crossed the room to crash into a wall.

"Fall back to the throne" Balder called out to those Einherjar still standing, "he must not reach the throne!"

Balder stood in front of the warriors that stood in readiness to defend the realm with their last breath, "I am Balder Odinson, Lord of light and you will go no further monster!"

No sooner had the words come from his mouth then a burst of blinding pure white light erupted from his body and enveloped the form of the brute. With a shriek of pain, Mangog attempted to shield his eyes with his clawed hands when he felt a smashing blow to his fist and he released Loki/Odin who fell to the floor. Landing where Loki/Odin fell Thor looped his father's arm around his neck and getting the Allfather to his feet moved him swiftly away from the murderous monster. Thor took Loki/Odin to the nearest pillar to hide him behind it.

"Can't breathe" Loki/Odin gasped with a rasping voice as he collapsed to the floor, "armor…is crushing me…"

Setting his war hammer down Thor searched for the seam of his father's chest plate and when he found it he slipped his fingers under it and ripped the chest plate off which brought a gasp of relief from Loki/Odin.

"Oh my love" Amora appeared from nothing to kneel at Loki/Odin's side to take hold of her husband's head with her hands, "you're safe." Turning to Thor she spoke commandingly, "I will protect him, go and destroy the beast."

With a nod of his head Thor picked up Mjolnir rose to his feet and returned to the fray.

With Thor's concentration entirely on stopping Mangog, Amora revealed the rectangular box to Loki/Odin and opening it she showed him two long bladed daggers with runes engraved on both blades. "The beast does have a weakness that you can exploit but you must plunge each dagger clear to their hilts…"

"The black spots on the brute's back…" Loki/Odin grimaced in pain as he picked up one dagger to examine it, "that was the only oddity about it, but how do you know of this creature when there was nothing about it in the chronicles."

"Odin deemed that it was too dangerous to record in the chronicles, as then it would be common knowledge for traitors or invaders who might use the beast to destroy Asgard. Fortunately my father recorded it in his journals and he was caretaker for these which Odin had created especially for the beast."

"Once the daggers have struck their marks, what then? Will these slay the beast?"

"No, they are just the conduit for…" Amora was cut off by the roar of triumph from Mangog as he made his way to the throne. Grasping the upswept back arch of the throne the monster, with a mighty kick, sent the golden throne flying through the air straight towards the pillar where Loki/Odin and Amora were behind. Throwing up her hands and screaming out a spell of protection as a giant green bubble enveloped them as both Amora and Loki/Odin were struck by the throne as it went through the pillar.

Thor picked himself from off the floor from where the beast had sent him flying with its tail and he saw the monstrosity tear the back arch from the throne and then kick it towards his father and Amora.

"Noooooooooo!" he screamed. He could not, would not lose another parent to a monster as he reached out his right hand to summon Mjolnir and when his war hammer was back in his grasp he threw it and it bounced off the back of the monster's head.

Mangog ignored the blow as he pushed the cross guard towards the pillar while Balder and the small number of warriors that were left harried him the whole time desperate to stop the brute from his foul quest.

A stunned Loki coughed and choked on dust from the still settling debris as his mind cleared and realized that Amora was gone, and not only was his Enchantress missing so was Gungnir.

He reached for the daggers and looked at the runes written on both sides of the two of them; one side of both had written "Punishment" and the other side said "Absolution". He attempted to transform back into Odin-form but with a shock he discovered that he could not as he stared onto his reflection in the shiny steel of the blade in his right hand. How was that possible? If he could not transform then all would know that he was alive and Odin dead, but if he did not slay the monster there would be no place to escape to as all of reality would be destroyed. Grasping a dagger in either hand Loki transformed his armor as his familiar horned helmet appeared on his head and a gold breast plate affixed to his chest and to a gold back plate with his green cape flowing out of the shoulders. Looking out from under the demolished throne he steeled himself and made to charge the beast.

Mangog paid no further heed to the Asgardians that attacked him as he pushed the cross guard towards the great pillar behind the throne and with a satisfied roar joined the arched guard to the pillar. Instantly a golden light spiraled up the enormous hilt and shot skyward. When it hit the edge of the atmosphere the sky began to turn black and even in the throne room all could hear the screams of terror coming from the people of Asgard. The floor of the Golden Throne Room began to shake and debris started to fall from the ceiling as the pillar hilt began to rise from the floor with a deep rumbling.

"At long last I shall be avenged for my imprisonment" Mangog roared as the hilt began to tip downwards towards the floor as it continued to rise up and he reached up to grasp it as it descended.

"You fool" Balder screamed at the monstrosity "you will destroy yourself as well!"

"That matters not to me as long as you Aesir scum are dead" Mangog bellowed back as he made to pull the blade free from its scabbard. Lightning flashed through the sky and ominous thunder crashed as Mangog grasped the hilt under his right arm and began to pull it forward. The ground beneath them shook violently and buildings began to collapse as deep cracks appeared in the palace walls and sections of it broke off and crashed into the streets below.

Thor picked himself from off the floor and with a bellow he charged Mangog swinging his war hammer over his head he leaped up and smashed Mjolnir squarely in the brutes face. It did nothing to deter the beast who simply swatted the Thunder god away like an annoying insect. Thor sailed a crossed the room to smash into a wall. His helmet fell off as he slid to the floor and all went black for a few seconds then his eyes cleared. Wearily, slowly he rose from the floor to his unsteady feet and gamely ran back to confront the monster again. That's when he saw a flash of green dash from where his father had been hiding to sprint around behind the brute and he slowed to a stop not believing what he was seeing. It was Loki! With two long bladed daggers in his hands his "dead" brother leaped upon the scabbard and with them upraised raced towards the monster's back. Was he really seeing this? With a roar Loki leapt up and plunged both daggers into Mangog's back. Mangog released the hilt of the Odinsword and screamed in agony as he tried to reach behind himself to seize the source of his pain. Loki managed to avoid the clawed fists of the brute as he shoved both daggers clear to their hilts in the two black spots. He slipped as the creature writhed and twisted its bulk and grasping Loki's left leg with his right claw, Mangog pulled him off his back and screamed enraged as he crushed him until Loki screamed in acute agony. With not even so much as a glance Mangog threw Loki away like a broken toy and Thor's brother crashed into a far wall and slid, seemingly lifeless, to the floor.

"NO, LOKI!" screamed Amora as she seemed to appear from nowhere to rush to her beloved's side. Dropping to her knees she picked up his head and hysterically shook him trying to awaken him, as she could not tell if Loki was dead or simply unconscious. She dissolved his helmet and she stroked his forehead as her hand slid behind his ear to cradle his head to her heart as she wept.

Thor stood rooted to the spot, stunned at what he had just witnessed until his face contorted into a snarl and he turned to charge the screaming monster roaring at the top of his lungs as he sprang up to smash Mjolnir in Mangog's face. The monster took a hold of him with his right claw and began to squeeze, crushing the life out of the Odinson.

"Release my son creature!" a commanding, but week voice shouted and all stood still as they saw the Allfather enter the throne room. He was dressed in grey raggedy clothes with a floppy pointed grey hat upon his head that dipped over his missing eye and he had Gungnir in his hands.

"Odin!" Mangog growled as he dropped Thor to the floor. "My revenge will now be complete as I watch you die for imprisoning me all those millennium ago."

"Your memory has grown faulty after so long a time brute" Odin raised Gungnir up and pointed its blade at the fiend as a bolt of golden light shot forth and struck the twin daggers in the breast's back, "you were not imprisoned, you WERE the prison!"

A horrific scream erupted from Mangog as Odin explained further, "I defeated a heartless race of invaders and formed them into you. I sealed you in the asteroid until your penance should be complete. Now I release them and return them to their home world to begin their lives again to live in peace with the cosmos."

As Thor looked on from the floor he saw the beast grow smaller as he could now see the shapes of an alien race that divorced themselves from Mangog's body and through a vortex of time and space each one was returned to their home planet until the monster was no more and the vortexed was closed by the Allfather.

"Father…what happened to you? How came you to be this way?" Thor groaned, perplexed at his father's appearance.

"Explanations came be made later as we must evacuate the palace with the wounded immediately. Guards" Odin commanded what was left of the warriors to come to Thor's aid and to Balder's as he strode to where Loki lay, either unconscious or dead. He bent down to attempt to pick his errant son up but Amora pushed him away.

"Leave him" she cried out in inconsolable grief, "don't you dare touch him…you who cared nothing for him!"

"He lives, and he is my son" Odin said calmly as he lifted Loki into his arms and carried him out.

Amora gasped and rising to her feet followed the old man and her beloved as more debris began to fall from the ceiling. The wall, along with part of the floor Loki had been lying on, cracked and fell to the ground as the palace shuttered from Mangog's devastation.

"Thor, over here" called out the welcomed voice of Fandral as a flying ship hovered over the balcony of the Golden Throne room. Einherjar jumped out of the boat to aid in rescuing the wounded and when all were aboard it lifted up and flew away. Odin laid Loki's still form upon one of the cushioned seats at the fore of the ship and Amora sat next to him weeping uncontrollably.

Sif glared at both of them as she now had it figured out that Loki had been disguised as the Allfather and Amora had been his accomplice. With a righteously smug grin on her face she looked at the two conspirators who would soon be gracing the Executioner's block. Thor helped Balder to the seat a crossed from Loki and Amora as his older brother had broken his right leg. Balder slipped his arm from around Thor's neck to sit down with a grimace on his face. Thor's right arm hung useless at his side crushed in two places as he sat down next to Balder.

Loki had died in his arms on Svartalfheim, so how was it possible that he could now be here, alive and why was his father dressed so, and seemingly gaunt and ill-used. Thor could see that his father was having difficulty standing in the craft as it flew to the open plains behind Asgard proper where many of the people had managed to flee to.

Odin turned to an Einherjar standing next to him and ordered the warrior to fetch all the healers to tend to the wounded when the ship was landed and the soldier saluted his king exclaiming that he would immediately.

"Father, how came you to be so ill used?" Balder questioned his sire, speaking the words Thor wished to say.

"I was in the dungeons these last four years" Odin sighed with a distant look upon his haggard but still imperial face, "a prisoner of Loki."

"Justice would not leave you there Allfather" Sif broke in, her face painted with hatred "and now the axe will fall for these two traitors who well deserve death."

"Oh that would suit you just fine wouldn't it warrior "MAIDEN"" Amora looked up from Loki's unconscious form to glare back at Sif. Sif who now blanched and looked shocked back at her. "Yes, he told me all about it and we both had a good laugh at how easily you whored yourself to him when you thought he was Thor."

Amora caught the look of shocked amazement on the Thunder god's face as she explained further, "Loki did at one time have feelings for you, but you cruelly dashed them to the ground and trampled upon them with your self-righteous feet. He was invisible, hidden in Thor's shadow, but Loki has won this time and you will never be Queen."

With a triumphant smile upon her face the Lady Amora simply disappeared.

"Where has she gone?" Balder gasped amazed as all had thought she was on board but she'd been nothing more than a doppelgänger.

"Unknown, but it matters not my sons" Odin replied wearily, "when we land have the healers see to your injuries, with Loki's tended to first."

Sif tried to voice her objections but a stern look from her King stopped her and she bowed her head in submission but her face spoke volumes of disgust that her folly from so long ago should be made known, and in front of Thor. She turned and walked to the ship's aft where she sat down and put her head in her hands so no one could see her cry.

When the air ship settled on an open space on the plain, Odin again lifted Loki's prone form into his arms and carried him off the ship with the grave look of a worried father upon his face as Thor helped Balder down the gang plank.

Thor helped Balder to sit on the green turf of the plain, trying hard not to cause his older half-brother any more pain than he already felt as he then went to sit down next to Loki. The healers set up a portable soul forge to deal with Loki's injuries and Thor grimaced when he saw the extent of them. Loki's left side of his face was swollen and bruised with his left eye completely closed. His entire rib cage had been crushed by the monster. His left side of his hip had been neatly snapped in two and his left leg and right arm were broken. As he watched them heal his brother's injuries Thor pondered on how Loki could still be alive. He'd seen Loki skewer the Kursed with an elvish sword only to be impaled upon it himself. When the implosion grenade destroyed the Kursed elf he'd gone to Loki's side, held him in his arms, watched his skin turn black as he faded away. Loki had died saving his life for the brute surely would have beaten him to death, and then possibly, Jane would have met an equally cruel fate at the beast's hands

He also wondered how Loki could have masqueraded as their father for so long and no one noticed it. The Healers came to him but Thor waved them off telling them to see to Balder's leg first as they ceased working on Loki and moved the soul forge to the older Odinson. Thor moved closer to Loki and with his left hand sliding behind Loki's neck he gently picked Him up to cradle him in his arm. Of all the things that Loki was, the schemer; the liar, the traitor, Loki…was his brother whom he never stopped loving. Even though Sif was right, Loki was destined for the axe now for his treachery; Thor knew in his heart he would…even if he had to bend the knee to beg…try to convince his father to spare Loki's life.

The Asgardian sun had reached its zenith when Thor heard a faint groan come from Loki and saw his eyelids tremble with effort in order to rise. "Why do I feel as if I've been trampled by a Bilge Snipe" Loki groaned as his right eye slowly opened to look up at him.

"So brother" Loki said weakly and with much effort as it was painful for him to even breathe, "You survived. Strangely, that makes me happy."

"You died in my arms on Svartalfheim so how can you be here?"

"Apparently you do not have a long memory dear brother." A flash of green light surrounded Thor and once again he'd been transformed into the Lady Sif. "You still look ravishing."

Embarrassed Thor realized that if Loki, who's natural gift was as a shape shifter, could shape-shift him into Sif, it would be nothing at all for him to turn a Dark elf into himself and hypnotize it to slay the Kursed and die in his place. With a smile on his face Loki removed the spell from Thor, "Now we're even brother…life for a life."

"Which will not be a long one you traitor, as the fall of the axe will make sure of that!" Sif spat out hatefully.

"So sorry to disappoint you dear Sif" came the voice of Amora as she materialized at Loki's feet, "but why would Odin execute his ONLY heir to the throne?"

"So, my betrayer returns" Loki growled with increasing rage.

"I have not betrayed you my love" Amora's form radiated a green and gold light and all knew she wasn't really there, that this was only an illusion of her, "I have saved you, and for a wedding present, I have given you the Golden Throne of Asgard. Think my love, why do you suppose I was so insistent that the chroniclers be present at our wedding, my coronation, and Thor's public renouncing of his right to succession?"

Slowly a wicked, but satisfied smirk developed on Loki's face "Oh Amora, you clever girl. I will always bless the day I married you" he laughed softly at this monumental jest "as well as the day I thought of marrying you."

"What difference could the recording in the chronicles be?" Sir snarled back at Amora with what Thor thought was the ugliest look he'd ever seen on the warrior maiden's face.

It was Odin that answered back with a voice that sounded exhausted and defeated, "As laid down by my father's father, King Buri when he instituted the chronicles…"What is written, is written and cannot be revoked."

Amora enjoyed watching that sink into the thick skulls surrounding her and Loki before she spoke, "The axe will not fall, for either of us as Odin dare not kill his one and only heir to his throne."

"Loki isn't an Odinson" Sif growled back vehemently, "He is the son of Laufey of Jotunheim!"

"You were right my love" Amora turned back to Loki, "she is an insipid cow. For you've forgotten that Odin adopted Loki son of Laufey and Freya, Odin's daughter - his grandson - as HIS son, and when he did so, he restored Loki's blood right succession. "

Oh how Amora wished she had an illustrator present to preserve forever the look of horror on Sif's face when it dawned on her that Thor can now never be King and she, she would never be Queen, never be THOR's Queen. Loki for his part softly laughed in triumph as his murdered mother's wish had come true…Asgard was HIS!

" You'll have a difficult time ruling from the dungeons Loki" Fandrall quipped as he and the other two of The Warriors Three joined the group, each looking none-the-worse for their battle with Mangog "you and our new Queen."

Amora sighed, what cretins they were, "That will never happen for I am where Odin's reach is far too short and should he try to arrest me, it would mean war, a long and bloody war."

"So you are safe on Nornheim, under Karnilla's protection."

"No my love, I'm not. Karnilla showed me the clause in the Treaty of Blood which states that any Asgardian criminal or one considered to be a criminal must be returned to Asgard to face punishment."

"Then where are you little sister, if I may ask?" Balder spoke up for the first time while the Healers dealt with his broken leg.

"I am where every last man, woman, and child will take up arms to defend their Mother-Consort" Amora's laid her hands upon her stomach and she beamed at Loki triumphantly.

"Mother-Consort, what do you…?" Loki looked at her confused, but his confusion was only momentary. "You're on Alfheim…and you're…you're…"

"Yes my husband, or should I say, Father-Consort, for when our daughter reaches maturity she shall be crowned Queen of Alfheim and sit the Pearl Throne of her grandmother.'

"Daughter, a daughter...you…I'm…" at first it seemed to Amora that he was disappointed that her child wasn't a son, but then, with his mouth wide with unexpected surprise, his demeanor slowly began to change. Disappointment flowed into revelatory shock into the slow spreading grin of a father-to-be.

"I'm going to have a daughter!" his face beamed up at her with delight. His grin turned into one of triumph as he turned to Odin who stood by silently as this news was brought forth. "You do know what this means you bloody old bastard, don't you. That's why you're so silent now as you know Loki WINS!"

With naught that Odin could do about it and perhaps this was the better revenge. To let Odin live to see him on the throne, to see the children of Loki start a new dynasty, to live out his worthless life in the shade of Loki's shadow.

"And what of Thor? What will happen to him?" Hogun broke in seemingly disrupting Loki's revelry.

"Apparently you weren't listening at the feast when Loki honored him with the title of Lord Protector of the Realms" Amora snidely replied.

"Thor will stand at my throne as my protector, from any or all threats outside the Realm Eternal, or treacheries in it" Loki gazed imperiously at Sif when he spoke as he'd always known how much she hated him. He'd long ago deduced that it was she who instigated going to Midgard to return the banished Thor. Most definitely the Lady Sif would be the first to grace the dungeons, then The Cretins Three.

"Is that what you want?" Sif looked dumfounded at Thor, "To be nothing more than a titled thrall?"

"What I want Sif" Thor snapped back angrily, "I already have. I have my brother back and we can begin again, be what we were.'

Loki glanced askance at Thor then chortled "Sentiment, it will prove to be your downfall brother as it's your greatest weakness."

"No Loki, we can start anew, we were close once and we can be again."

"Is this the real reason why you came to me after mother died and offered me a chance to avenge her, or, was it just because you needed my craft and cunning for as long as they…I was useful to you?"

"I, plainly and simply, want my brother back."

Before Loki could reply they heard a youth's voice cry out, "Over here mother! Over here!"

"Forseti" Balder cried out and reached out to his son. His face broke into joy that not only had his son survived but he saw Nanna hitch up the skirts of her dress to dash towards him. Both of them fell upon the warrior Prince grasping him as tightly as he held them while they cried in relief.

"A pleasant thought dear brother" Loki contemplated briefly before finishing his answer "but impossible."

"No not impossible, not while we two live" Thor tried hard to reach his brother, to inspire him to break what seemed to be a melancholy spirit falling upon him.

"This is just like Stark Tower" Loki ruefully grinned. "You cannot have your brother back because that Loki died on Jotunheim eight years ago. Murdered by you while you were "…looking for the truth" Loki imitated Thor's voice "and another Loki came back. A Loki who finally KNEW the truth, that everything was a lie."

"Carrion, you dare call Thor a murderer" an enraged Sif drew her sword and rising it above her head made to separate Loki from his head.

"SIF NOOOOO" Fandrall and Volstagg grabbed her and with Hogun's help barely managed to stop her but the fatal blow did not come because Thor used his own body to shield Loki from her and he suffered a shallow stab wound to his right shoulder that made him grunt from pain.

"Enough of this, guards remove the Lady Sif, disarm her and keep her guarded" Odin bellowed as The Warriors Three pulled back a near hysterical Sif who cried that she hadn't meant to harm Thor.

"Healers, tend to my son's wound" Odin commanded loudly as Sif was removed from his presence.

"I suppose you think this puts me in your debt again" Loki tried to scowl at Thor then broke into a mild grin, "hell it probably does."

As the Healers staunched the blood flow and sealed the wound shut, though it would always leave a scar, Thor grinned back "Damn right it does."

"After your death I started to have dreams about you and many times when either falling asleep or waking up I could swear I heard your voice, calling out to me. As if you were telling me that you really weren't dead. I put it down to wishful thinking only, as I held you while you "died"." Thor looked full into Loki's face "Can you not truthfully say that, perhaps, subconsciously you were telling me you were alive? That you still love me as your brother?"

Loki looked away from him and stared out into the distance, "Perhaps I was. All my life I admired you, even worshiped you, though you were never worthy of it."

"Given time brother, I can prove myself worthy as I have changed and for the better I believe" Thor gave a half smile while Loki chortled.

"Too bad I seemed to been destined not to have had the chance while she was here" Loki grimaced, "as I really would have liked to have had a talk with your mortal, just to find out what it was she did to make you less of an annoying prat."

"That won't be necessary Loki" Thor grinned sheepishly at his brother. "For I can tell you that she made me grow up, face my responsibilities to others in need, both as a warrior Prince and a Hero."

"I hate to interrupt this little reunion but it is time to leave my love" Amora interjected smiling broadly "as your rescue party should be materializing any moment now."

With these words spoken from her crimson lips, wisps of smoke rose up from the ground and swirled into large pillars that took on the forms of warriors, Elven warriors, which formed a circle around Thor and Loki. Shields up and swords at the ready they braced for any interference from the Asgardians as a smoke column appeared behind Thor and directly in front of Odin. These too were Elven warriors as the one behind Thor held a long bladed dagger to his throat and a woman held a spear to Odin's throat.

"Move not Allfather" she said commandingly. "Though I bare thee no ill will, I will kill ye shouldst thou attempt to stop us from taking the Father-Consort."

"Oder, is it him? Be he the son of our late Queen, as the Asgardian woman Amora hast revealed to us?" The woman Wore a shiny helmet with hammered, up swung wings of a swan, with the body and head of the swan in white enamel. She wore a silver torque about her neck and her breast plate was of woven strips of brass over a green side less shirt and the back plate was solid brass. Her spear shaft was brass plated wood with a very large and menacing spear head. She dared a brief glance back at the warrior behind Thor and Loki.

"My blade is sharp Odinson, so make no move as I have no wish to slay thee."

The one called Oder shifted his position in order to gaze upon Loki's face and when he did his eyes widened and his mouth dropped in shock as he stared at Loki without answering the Elf woman.

"Oder, Be he the one?!" she cried out impatiently.

Loki stared back at his newfound benefactor curiously as it seemed the Elf man had lost the ability to speak. Slowly though the White Elf composed himself and with some emotional effort blurted back, "Aye it be him." And then softly he muttered "He be her mirrored image."

This statement and the obvious great emotional upheaval the Elf showed upon seeing his face piqued Loki's curiosity and he determined to find out why he reacted so.

At that moment though all thoughts of this new mystery were shoved roughly aside when the alarm in the weapons vault began to sound and all present reacted with shock and surprise.

"No" Odin gasped and Loki's face grew pale as he had acquired some of Odin's ability to see afar and he shouted at Amora. "To the weapons vault and take the gauntlet before he can get to it as he has come for the Tesseract! Go, now!"

With a flash of green and gold light the image of Amora disappeared as Loki had told her of the Titan, told her what he had done to him and described what the monster did to the children he "adopted". She instantly appeared in the weapons vault in time to see the mad Titan shatter the cube with another gauntlet and quickly place the stone inside it onto the metal glove. He saw her appear on the walkway and grinned at her with triumph until he saw the other gauntlet in her hands.

"This you will never have madman" Amora said just as triumphantly as she disappeared along with the gauntlet before Thanos' eyes.

"It is safe my love for I have it now."

"And because you have it YOU are not safe now" Loki cried out in fear as his left arm rose up and with a mumbled incantation and the proper hand movement he caused Amora to disappear.

"Where did the woman go?" the Elf warrior questioned, his voice tinged with awe at this display of magical power.

"To another dimension, another reality, where not even one as powerful as Thanos can follow her" Loki sighed not in relief, but fear.

"Thanos" Thor braved to speak up even though the Elven blade was still at his throat, "the mad Titan! How came you to be involved with Thanos?"

"When I invaded Earth who do you think was my benefactor?"

"And now he has the Infinity stone hidden inside the Tesseract" Odin spoke emotionlessly as he lifted Gungnir and slammed the spear's point into the ground and when he did so both he and Loki disappeared in a flash of gold light.

"What…where…" the Elf woman turned from the empty space that Odin had been standing in to gaze at Thor whose arm was now empty and the Odinson was just as stupefied as they were.

"Where is the Father-Consort!" she screamed enraged, "where is he?"

"Balder!" came a hysterical scream from Nanna just seconds later, and glancing towards where his half-brother had been sitting with his family, Thor saw that Balder had disappeared too.

"Return to us our Father-Consort" and when the woman realized that all gathered had no idea where the Allfather had taken Loki. "Upon thy feet Odinson for thou art now hostage until our late Queen's son be returned to us."

With the tip of her spear in Thor's throat the warrior Elf helped him to his feet as all the Elves and the Thunder god were enveloped in smoke that when it dissipated they were gone from the realm.

It took a brief moment for his eyes to recover from the intense glare of light from Gungnir but Balder quickly discovered that he, Loki, and his father were in a strange cave with what looked like a mouth of a tunnel of glowing lights at its back. "Father, where are we?"

"Did you think that I was unaware of your nocturnal wanderings" Odin ignored Balder to stare at Loki, "or realize what you had found during them?"

With Balder's help, Loki sat up and glared at Odin. "So you spirit me away from prying eyes to rid yourself of me. To sweep the last of your "sins" away by killing me here and disposing of my body on some foul and lifeless world…like you did my mother" Loki chortled disgustedly, then roared red faced. "Why do you hesitate, do your deed and be mercifully swift about it. Unless you wish to slowly kill me with more inane babble about wanting to "protect" me because I am your son."

"You are my son, you have always been my son" Odin sighed with exhaustion "I sought to protect you then and I will do so now." With some effort Odin raised Gungnir up to slam its point down on the cave floor and a golden beam of light from its spear head struck Loki, "I take away your powers!"

Loki gasped in shock and writhed trying to fight the Allfather's magic spell only to succumb to it and faint away in Balder's arms who cried out in shocked confusion. "Father, what are you doing, how is this protecting him?"

"To hide him from the mad Titan, I take away all his memories and render him mortal" Odin voiced weakly as Loki's hair turned from black to a golden reddish color and Balder gasped in surprise as it resembled the color of Freya's hair and the male Elf had been right, for Balder had heard him mumble that Loki was the mirrored image of his mother, now more than ever. He then cried out in shock and embarrassment as their clothing disappeared leaving both of them naked. "I will send you with him, to watch over him."

The golden light ceased and Odin held out his left hand to Balder and on his palm was the winged shape shifting charm of Freya. "Take it, for I have made you mortal too, and you will need this to protect yourself as well."

Balder took the chained talisman from his father, draping it around his neck, and once again Odin struck the cave floor with Gungnir and they were sucked into the vortex. Balder clung tightly to Loki as he feared they might be separated and his younger brother could come to harm before he could find him. The flight through the vortex was making him nauseous, but gratefully it was not long. He and Loki were deposited on a pile of rubbish next to a large container that was over flowing with trash. It was bitterly cold and they seemed to be in a narrow lane or alley that connected to another and just outside an immense building with boarded up windows and a singular door that appeared to be metal.

"Why have you brought us to Midgard? The mortals will kill Loki when they discover who he is!" Balder blurted out incredulously wondering if those four years in the dungeons hadn't affected his father's mind.

"Make sure they do not" was all his father said as a golden light flashed all around Odin changing the grey rags he wore into tattered human clothes and Gungnir into a wooden walking stick before he simply walked away.

"Father, father, do not leave us this way…what am I to do?"

A sound of grating metal distracted Balder and he saw the metal door open and a young man with dark skin, straight black hair wearing a weathered brown jacket over a black shirt. A grimy apron was tied around his blue jeans waist as he walked out of the doorway with another bag of rubbish in his hand.

"Please, help us" Balder cried out weakly as the cold was becoming more than he could bear.

The human stopped in his tracks when he heard Balder's cry, dropped the bag and ran back into the building screaming for someone called Mike. Moments later a tall, grey haired man dressed in a red plaid, unbuttoned shirt over a ribbed, white under shirt and oil stained jeans came out with a giant of a man whose head was bound with a dark blue cloth.

The giant wore a grey pull over shirt that revealed him to be powerfully muscled and both of them carried blankets in their arms. Balder was grateful when the older man wrapped him in the blanket as he helped him to his feet. The giant wrapped Loki in the blanket that he had and then, with no effort at all, picked Loki up into his arms and carried him into the building. The grey haired man helped him to follow the giant and the metal door was shut and the warmth of the room, which was a large kitchen, felt very good to the near frozen Asgardian Prince.


	13. EPILOGUE ONE

EPILOGUE ONE

Ellie Mahoney, a short stocky, squared shouldered woman with greying wavy brown hair, had been helping out at the synagogue food pantry, which was jointly run with a local Catholic and Methodist church. When she and Rosa Angelita returned to the homeless shelter (that her and her husband Mike managed together) that had been a Catholic school. Molly, the Jamaican head cook at the shelter, told her upon arrival of the two men found naked in the alley and the two women made for the nearest hospital, St. Martha's, where Mike and Dalip had taken them.

Ellie made quick inquiries at the nurse's desk as to where the men's rooms were then she and Rosa dashed off as fast as Ellie's flat feet would let her go. In the first room that they came to, numbered 4014, she found her husband Mike sitting in a chair in between two beds. The first bed had been occupied, but now was empty. In the other was the unconscious form of a young man. When she saw the young man's face, his strawberry blond hair, she halted, frozen in place. "Oh God…oh Christ almighty…" she gasped in uncomprehending shock.

Mike rose up from his chair; his facial expression of dread echoed the feeling in the pit of his own stomach when he first saw the near frozen, unconscious younger man. "Ellie, you know as well as I do that's not our Logan. They were through in the DNA testing of all the body par…the dead…our son is dead, dead and buried…"

"Then you explain to me how he could have MY SON'S FACE" she pointed at the prone figure in the hospital bed as tears of sorrow blinded her. Rosa said nothing as the young, Puerto Rican woman gently embraced the older white woman sympathetically. What could she say, for she'd often seen the picture of Logan Mahoney (that always sat on Ellie's tiny bedside table) looking so sharp and proud in his Marine uniform? He'd joined the Marines to be like both his parents, who were ex-marines, and had been killed fighting in Afghanistan. The Humvee he'd been riding in had been following the one that carried billionaire Tony Stark and a rocket, identified as being manufactured by Stark Industries, blew it to kingdom come. All they found were body parts and the Mahoney's lost their only son, their only child, but it was frightening to Rosa to see this young man, who indeed was the exact image of their long dead son.

The Midgardian nurse was bringing Balder back to his and Loki's room after going to what she had called an X-ray room and a strange machine hovered over his leg while the nurse stood behind a glass shielded corner of the room. She explained that they had taken pictures of the bones of his leg to determine the extent of the damage to it. Not knowing if he could trust these mortals Balder decided to play a child-like simpleton, hoping that his charade would forestall any questions about how he and Loki came to be at the school's alley and naked. The nurse was slowly leading him down the hall as he walked with the aid of crutches when he heard the cries of a woman's anguished heart. He saw the man who'd brought them to this great house of healing rise from his chair to speak to the woman and Balder stopped when he heard what she said. He was just as confused as the mortal woman was; Loki looked exactly like her dead son?

Agent Phil Colson walked into the control room when Fitz phoned him to report a rather strange phenomenon that had abruptly appeared on their surveillance monitors. Fitz replayed the anomaly for Colson who asked "Show me where it set down."

With his fingers racing over the holographic key board Fitz tapped into a military satellite and began to trace the energy signature until it showed an old, run down Catholic school and two naked men in a back alley. The two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents watched as people came out of the school building and quickly took the two naked men into the school.

"Do you suppose their two Asgardians?" the young science officer theorized to Colson, "What would they be doing, naked and outside an old school?"

"I don't know" Colson replied with a deadly serious look upon his face "but I'm going to investigate…by myself."

With no further explanation Agent Phil Colson left.

"Where are we My Lady?" Magnus glanced about himself, barely controlling the terror that he felt. Both he and his newfound father, Ake, were waiting on the Lady Amora as she talked to Loki from where they were on Alfheim. When she vanished, she then reappeared seconds later, with a strange metal gauntlet covered with glowing stones of diverse colors. If that were not strange enough, the one called Loki had made them vanish and they were now in some wild and weird place of floating mountains and hills with a gold path of sorts weaving aimlessly through this dark realm. There seemed to be suns or planets, if that's what they were, shining in a black sky. There was nothing, at least nothing they could see, living in this strange realm.

"I have no idea boy" Amora slowly turned about to scan the horizons, "but we three seem to be alone."

"Even if we are not" the young thrall held up a sword he'd picked up from a fallen Einherjar "I will protect you My Lady, to my dying breath."

Amora would have laughed at the way the sword shook in the boy's grip, as she knew he'd never held one in his life before, if it had not been for the serious look on his handsome face. The youth meant what he said though and she would see to it that he would be well rewarded for his bravery and loyalty.

"What shall we do for shelter My Lady?" Ake inquired of his mistress. "This path seems to go nowhere and I see no hall or house wherewith to seek shelter or hospitality or food."

"I think I can take care of that my silly old bird" Amora said comfortingly to her old caretaker as she slipped the gauntlet over her right hand. Making a fist she commanded the road to rise up, expand and curl to form a dome large enough to house the three of them.

The doorway was tall and narrow, for protections sake in case there were dangers unknown. Amora walked into the dome and using the gauntlet fashioned two beds, the larger one for her, and a fireplace built in the middle of the room that blazed a mystic fire for their warmth, whose smoke escaped through an open grating in the ceiling. A few feet away from the fire, arising from the floor appeared a round table and fruit magically placed on it.

"Come now let us eat and sleep without fretting for we shall be safe" Amora smiled at her thrall attendants as she held up the gauntlet, "as long as I have this."


	14. EPILOGUE 2

EPILOGUE 2

When the smoke cleared, Thor found himself in a strange hall and he figured he was now on Alfheim. He was still held captive by the Elvin warrior's blade as the woman Elf commanded smithies to be brought with a forge and anvil to make what she called "a collar of containment" and a warrior left to do her bidding.

"Thou shalt be kept in hosterage Odinson until the timely return of our Father and Mother-Consort, and hast no need to fear from us, unless it be that thou shouldst attempt to escape." The Elf woman lowered her spear from Thor's throat resting its end on the floor and the warrior behind him removed his dagger from his throat as well.

"Do I have your word on that" Thor questioned his captors with a hint of doubt in his voice.

"My word is my bond of honor Asgardian" the woman growled at him, "as High Stewart of Alfheim."

Turning to another of the warriors that had accompanied them to Asgard she commanded him to fetch a Healer to attend to Thor's wounds. Bowing the warrior left them in obedience to the High Stewart.

The Elvin smithies showed up at nearly the same time as the Elvin Healer did and both quickly set upon their respective tasks. A thrall brought Thor a flagon of ale and a stool to sit upon as the Healer, kneeling next to the Thunder god, set his broken arm and immobilized it with four thin, grey metal bars wrapped in leather taken out of a leather pouch. Which were then carefully wrapped with leather strips around his hand and arm, these were held by a thrall, to hold them in place. The Healer was an Older Elf with grey hairs sprinkled through his red hair and he wore a white Tabard over a gold colored shirt. His breeches were also gold in color and Thor noticed that he was barefoot. As a matter of fact all the Elves were barefoot, even the High Stewart. The Healer produced a shimmering disk, which seemed to cast multi-colored hues, from his pouch and when held in his hand it began to glow brightly and the Healer slowly waved it over his injured arm. Thor could actually feel the broken bones knitting together. After only a minute the Elvin Healer put the disk away and rising up to his bare feet informed the High Stewart that his work was finished.

Now Thor turned his attention to the Smithies who were still heating up a small portable forge to begin their work on the collar of containment. Accompanied by three young male thralls the largest male Elf took a long flat bar of silver and began to heat it on the forge. With repeated firing and hammering on a small anvil, the Smithy beat the bar into a flat sheet of sliver that was as broad as Thor's hand was long. Then the Smithy started to curl the flatten silver into a tubular shape with the edge of the anvil. When it gained the appearance of a pipe with a slender opening down the side a thrall handed him what looked like a transparent eel whose insides were various colored wires. There were two silver disks at each end and it had some wires hanging from them with silver dots at their ends.

This, the Smithy placed inside the silver pipe and then returned it to the forge to reheat until the silver was glowing like a bright yellow sun. Thor was amazed that the 'eel like thing' didn't melt, didn't seem to be damaged in the least from the heat of the fire or the pounding of the Smithy's hammer. Once the silver pipe was completely closed, the Smithy began to curl it into a semi-circle until it resembled the torques the Elves (with the exception of the thralls) all wore. Holding up the torque for examination it seemed to satisfy the Smithy and he lowered it into a large metal bucket of water. Steam from the hot metal spewed forth and after inspecting it again nodded towards the High Stewart.

"It be ready M'Lady."

"Then place it upon his neck and activate it." She commanded as she picked up her spear and placed it again at Thor's throat.

Going around to Thor's back the Smithy placed the silver torque about the Asgardian Prince's neck and with a grunt of exertion bent it to so it fit snugly as the ends of it nearly touched. The ends rested upon his collar bone as the Smithy did something to the back of the torque and it began to whirr and whine as if it were alive. Thor heard a clicking noise and then his neck and chest were pierced by the wires that hung from the two metal disks at each end of the torque. Caught off guard, as he hadn't known what to expect, he screamed in pain and slid off the stool onto the floor. The pain was sharp, but momentary, and gasping he slowly got to his feet as he realized the thing within the torque was now grafted into his body.

Lowering her spear from his throat and resting the butt of it on the floor the High Stewart spoke. "Thou art free to access any part of the hall of the High Stewart or anywhere in this providence, but, make any attempt to escape or set foot outside its borders, and thou wilt die a painful death Odinson. Make any attempt to remove thy collar, whether by force or craft, and thou wilt die. See to it that thou obey the laws of Hosterage and we will see to thy every need. Whether it be food, drink, or concubine shouldst thou require it, it shall be done for thee."

Turning to the Elvin warrior she had called Oder she ordered him to prepare a room for and to take Thor to it. "Go with the Stewart of Alfheim for he shalt see to thy needs. Thou hast my leave to go Odinson."

Motioning with his right hand Oder directed Thor to make for the room's exit. Bowing his head and placing his arm over his heart, in respectful salute to the High Stewart, Thor made for the exit with the Stewart walking alongside him.

"To thy left Odinson" The Stewart spoke up after they passed through the doorway and Thor followed him down the wide hallway.

They walked on for what seemed to be a quarter of a kilometer when the Stewart motioned for Thor to enter a room. It was spacious and the Stewart ordered a thrall in the hallway to send more thralls to clean and prepare the room. "Now Odinson, what doth thou require at the nonce…food, drink, concubine? Whatever thou wouldst like it shall be brought to thee."

Jane Foster had just finished two speaking engagements and had time off before her next one about the Convergence and she'd received an invitation by Eric to come to the Avenger's facility in northern New York to share what she knew with S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists. A handful of lower level S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were helping her, Darcy and Ian with their luggage while a Maria Hill was leading them to their rooms. Eric greeted Jane at her room and offered to help with her luggage to relieve the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent carrying them. "It's good to see you again Jane and nice of you to come as I know your schedule is pretty full."

"Just set them down anywhere Eric" Jane pulled off her jacket and threw it on her bed along with her purse and night case, "and how could I refuse an offer from you to take a week off in beautiful upstate New York, even if it's in The Avenger's new headquarters."

"Well I'll let you get settled in" Maria Hill chimed in. "Now I'll show you two to your respective rooms and I have to warn you again not to wander into restricted areas or you will be shot."

"You're kidding right" Darcy smiled slightly snarky at the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and Nick Fury's right hand woman. "Right?"

"Hum mm, no, I'm not" Maria answered back in the same snarky vein and then smiled at Jane's unpaid intern.

It was Eric that noticed the pillar of smoke that came from nowhere to develop in the middle of Jane's bedroom. It grew in size and width as they piled into Jane's room to see this oddity while Maria Hill pressed her com-device on and ordered guards, double-time, to Jane Foster's room as she drew her service revolver and aimed it at the pillar.

"Everyone get behind me" Maria ordered and they started to when the smoke started to clear and they saw an armored man step forth as he drew the sword at his side from its scabbard.

"A Dark Elf…but you were destroyed…Thor stopped you from unleashing the Aether" Jane gasped at the man.

"Thou art mistaken woman I am of The Lios Alfar…"

"A White Elf!" Eric Selvig blurted out, interrupting the warrior.

"I hast come for the woman known as Jane Foster" Oder kept his sword by his side at the ready but made no attempt to use it, even though he knew the strange thing the dark haired woman held must be some kind of Midgard weapon.

To Jane he seemed not to be totally unlike the Dark Elves of Malekith as his ears were pointed, but that was as far as the comparison went. This Elf had golden blond hair and blue eyes; his armor was woven brass over a green side less shirt, his trousers were tan colored leather and he was bare foot.

"Why would you want Jane Foster?" Eric questioned the White Elf warrior.

"Odin hath disappeared, taking our Queen's son…our Father-Consort with him and we know not where they hast fled to. We have taken the Odinson known as Thor hostage until our Father-Consort be restored to us. He hath requested I bring the mortal woman, Jane Foster, to him on Alfheim."

"I'm not going anywhere" Maria Hill answered back still holding her pistol at Oder.

"I'll go" Darcy spoke up "If he's alright."

"No don't, I'll go" Jane said with concern as she could see this stalling tactic was only making the Elf angry.

With an irritated huff the White Elf warrior whirled around behind Ian as he whipped his sword to the intern's throat and growled, "I hath not the time or temperament for such nonsense, give me Jane Foster or I give thee his head."

"No don't…please don't" Darcy started to cry, bringing her hands to her mouth in fear, as she knew this joker wasn't kidding, he actually would cut off her intern's head.

"Please, I'm Jane Foster and I'll go with you" Jane placed her hand on Maria Hill's and made her lower her gun. "Just please don't hurt anybody okay."

Slowly Oder lowered his sword from Ian's neck and extended his left hand to her. Cautiously Jane took his hand in hers and he pulled her close to his body as they were enveloped in smoke and then the two of them disappeared

As Commander of the Einherjar and the oldest Odinson, Tyr ordered what was left of his men to clear the rubble from the streets and to search through those buildings that were safe to enter, for the wounded and the dead. A group of Einherjar were searching through the rubble at the palace, of which only half of it still stood, and they had not been successful at finding anyone alive but they had already found several dead bodies and were pulling more out from under the crushing debris.

One man gave out a loud yelp and many paused in their grim work to see what he was yelling about. They saw him pick up a large hunk of what used to be a column and throw it at something they couldn't see. A blond haired Einherjar walked over the rubble to ask him what it was he'd seen and why throw something at it. The warrior replied he thought he'd seen a rat and that he must have killed it as he didn't see it run away. With this little bit of excitement over the soldiers went back to their duties.

From behind a pile of rubble, two hate filled eyes watched the Asgardians as they searched for the dead, and the small form scurried further away from them.

"I will yet have my revenge on you Odin for how could you destroy a hatred as deep as mine" and with that said, the tiny Mangog began to dig his way through the debris to reach the ground. Then he would continue to tunnel his way out of Asgard proper to wait until his time would come to destroy them all.

Fin


End file.
